


Gogo Tomago and the Roller Derby of Doom

by Nike



Series: Big Heroes [2]
Category: Big Hero 6 (2014)
Genre: Alive!Tadashi, Drag Queens, Gambling, Roller Derby, Women Being Awesome, cross dressing, forcible kissing, kidnapping/abduction, nothing underaged, only not, or below the belt, technically sexual assault, the fujitas are roller geisha
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-01-15
Updated: 2015-04-26
Packaged: 2018-03-07 18:14:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 11
Words: 42,664
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3178274
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Nike/pseuds/Nike
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>While Fred, Honey, and Wasabi are out of town at a convention, Gogo's going to risk life, limb, and her secret identity in order to participate in the biggest, baddest roller derby in San Fransokyo.  Because the grand prize?  Is Hiro and Tadashi Hamada.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Consequences

**Author's Note:**

> This is the first chapter of several of the series I've been making noises about. Big Heroes Oneshots is part of the same canon and the first one in particular is going to end up getting a brief mention at one point in this story. Updates are probably going to be slower than I like because I am literally working on (counts open writing processor windows) six different stories, at least one of which is _Father Knows Best_ and other of which is going to be the sequel to this story. Please be patient with me.
> 
>  
> 
> WARNINGS: There is a scene in a later chapter that has what is, for all intents and purposes, a woman sexually assaulting a man. Both characters are of age and there's literally nothing below the belt, but it may be potentially triggering to some people, so please be aware of that. I will warn again on the chapter in question.

Chapter 1 - Consequences

_Because every action causes a reaction, especially starting a superhero team._

"With the clean-up at Krei Tech continuing on after the incident earlier this week, people are begging to know more about this team calling themselves the Big Heroes. Who are they? Where are they now?"

Alistair Krei muted the TV at that point and steepled his fingers, pressing the tips of his forefingers to his lips as he thought. Multiple computer screens holding various bits of information sat before him, just below the line of sight for the TV. The interview that had played out earlier was a rather brilliant ploy. The Hamada brothers had managed to imply that their involvement was only slightly more than Krei's own - perhaps less even as only Hiro had really been spot-lighted - without actually denying anything outright. While the media argued over who Fredzilla was - money in Las Edos was on the blue one last Krei checked - and on whether it was right for White Knight to keep the stolen tech considering the rightful owner was the reason he could even control it, the Hamada brothers had waltzed through their fifteen minutes of fame and back into obscurity.

Meanwhile, the news had apparently segued into a segment on past vigilante superheroes including an odd fellow who had sometimes worn the underwear on the outside of his outfit backwards or even inside-out. Alistair looked away from the TV back towards the computer screens. SFIT student information was prominently displayed on them.

While SFIT did indeed have student information online, they also had privacy practices that limited the information to little more than a name, picture, and major. What Krei was currently looking at was his own private database. He kept his headquarters in San Fransokyo for a reason and being able to cherry-pick students from SFIT while headhunting was one of the reasons. Between students eager for internships, professors and post-grads looking for grants, and a school board willing to part with quite a bit of information just to keep the money flowing, Krei could find out quite a lot about any person who spent time on campus, even the school mascot. Gathering it all together just made it easier for his recruiters to recruit the right person at the right time in the right way. And apparently they'd been keeping an eye on Tadashi Hamada, judging on the size of his file.

According to the file, Tadashi Hamada had started school at age five, only for there to be a change in schools and grade levels once the adults in his life realized the reason he hadn't been doing well before had been due to a lack of interest rather than a lack of ability. After being skipped ahead a grade, he'd always placed into advanced classes and even then got impressive grades. He'd graduated at sixteen, although there had apparently been a discussion to make it fifteen. If he hadn't doubled his electives during his high school years, Tadashi probably would have graduated a year earlier.

Tadashi Hamada had then entered the SFIT showcase, gained immediate entry to the university about three years before now, and had apparently been making waves among the academics ever since. The reason he hadn't already caught Krei's attention was a combination of the fact his magnum opus was still unfinished by all reports and because, interestingly enough, Robert Callaghan had apparently been doing his best to keep the young man's abilities under wraps. If it weren't for all of the information from Hamada's other professors, Krei wouldn't have had much to go on at all.

As it was, Krei could only stare in awe at what he was seeing. Tadashi Hamada was in the middle of revolutionizing robotics coding. He'd figured out how to code autonomous learning in a robot, and one that wasn't physically bound to a server, either, all as a side-effect to the robot's main programmed purpose. All of his previous, minor projects proved the robotics prodigy could program a robot to learn and even replicate the coding. His major project was combining it as secondary coding to a main purpose, in this case nursing and healthcare. To pull that off, Krei thought, he'd need to build something capable of interacting with and learning from its environment because even something as simple as the different types of cuts one could obtain tended to stymie robots. Just a change in length, depth, or location could throw off an algorithm. 

And yet, he'd done it, Krei realized with a slow smile. There was a friendly-looking robot wandering around in armor that was apparently capable of making the decision on its own to blast free and rescue someone. Krei had been impressed enough when it had happened, even when he'd thought it was Hiro Hamada's work. With this new information, it seemed likely that Hiro had been responsible for the armor, but the actual robot itself was Tadashi's. Krei's eyes narrowed. He wanted that robot and, if possible, it's programmer. Even with just one of them, his company could re-write the history of robotics. If he could get Hiro Hamada as well that would just be the icing on the cake.

A knock pulled Krei out of his thoughts and he called out, "Come in, Yaqin."

His assistant did so, holding a rather important looking envelope, the type you put things in when you don't want them folded. Yaqin had it pressed to her front so she could quickly sign who it was from. It was amazing the amount of people who didn't know sign language. He'd taken full advantage of that fact and always got a kick out of the fact people just thought Yaqin was quiet and didn't realize she was entirely mute. She was also the most brilliant assistant he'd ever had and, while it had hurt seeing her run when Callaghan had attacked him, Krei had quickly forgiven her as there really wasn't anything she could've done aside from possibly being taken captive as well. She apparently felt guilty for it, however, as she'd given him an apology in the form of a gift basket.

Krei took the letter from her and quickly opened it to read. He'd been expecting something from the sender, although not precisely what was written. Krei let out a slow breath before ordering, "Clear my schedule this afternoon, if you would, Yaqin. I have some... arrangements I need to make."

Yaqin nodded before leaving, already taking out her tablet to reschedule as she walked out the door. Alistair Krei glanced at the TV in time to see a repeat of the Hamada brothers' interview was playing on mute before looking back at the computer screens. Then he smiled as an idea took hold.

~*~*~*~*~*~

"The hell did you do?" Tadashi muttered as he looked over the coding on the green chip. Baymax was standing powered down in his charging station while the red chip was sitting on the desk nearby. Baymax had been rather adamant that the red chip be removed first and that it be put in last when Tadashi mentioned he'd need to take out the green chip for a bit, which privately thrilled Tadashi. The fact Baymax was even capable of expressing preferences meant Tadashi's programming was working beautifully.

Tadashi had found people tended to fall into two camps when he mentioned he was building a robotic healthcare provider. Those who didn't know much, if anything, about robotics thought that it was interesting but boring goal. Those who actually knew about robotics tended to look at him like he was crazy, at least until they met Baymax, at which point the looks tended to be awed while they raved about how Baymax's coding worked. And it did work. Perhaps a little too well, considering what Tadashi was seeing.

"So did you code him while on a drinking binge or something?" Hiro asked from where he was sitting on a desk, legs swinging.

"No," Tadashi replied, rolling his eyes before frowning at Baymax's coding again.

"Tadashi? Drunk? Now that I have to see," Gogo stated with a smirk.

"What are you trying to fix?" Wasabi asked.

The whole team was currently stuffed into Tadashi's lab as it was neater than Hiro's, more private than their own, and didn't have media hanging around outside like the Lucky Cat. While Hiro's fame as being the microbots' creator seemed to be dying down, there were still a few people willing to trail him about in hopes of catching a glimpse of the Big Heroes, so they didn't dare meet at, say, Fred's house. They all had a reason to be in the Ito Ishioka Robotics Laboratory, though, which had locks and campus security to deter the media from entering. 

"Baymax acts drunk when his battery gets too low," Tadashi explained. Normally, he didn't allow people in his lab while he was working but Baymax was not only not a secret to his friends, but he wanted to get this done sooner rather than later - preferably without pulling an all-nighter - and Hiro had reminded him of it after everyone had already agreed to meet at his lab this afternoon.

"Makes sense to me," Fred said after a short pause. "The big guy gets tired, he starts shutting down non-essential programs."

"Yeah, but programming robots doesn't work that way," Hiro pointed out. "They just keep going same as always until the power's gone and then they shut down entirely... unless they've been coded to do otherwise." Hiro gave Tadashi a pointed look at that point.

"You, what, used hundreds of dollars and tons of time to program him to act drunk?" Gogo asked, snapping her gum.

"No. I programmed him to learn, complete with a reward system and the ability to tweak his own coding if necessary, and instructions to mimic the nicer human emotions so he could come across as more approachable. Apparently he decided to mimic human sleepiness much in the way Fred described... battery gets low and non-essential programs turn off one by one. While this has the advantage of making his battery last longer than it otherwise would or probably should, he's pretty much useless once he starts turning off his programs. He also managed to hook it up to the reward system somehow, hence why he apparently acts like a giddy drunk."

"So... he programmed himself to act drunk?" Honey Lemon asked. Tadashi sighed.

"That's what I'm seeing in this mess. And I don't know how to undo it without messing with his reward system - and potentially damaging his ability to learn - or undoing the code up until that point, which could erase everything else he's learned since like how to fight and fly and fist bump, among other things.

"Oh no!"

"Dude, you can't do that to Baymax! That's, like, not cool."

"And having him act like a drunk in the middle of a fight?"

"Are you actually considering continuing with the whole superhero thing? I mean, the whole thing with Callaghan kind of involved us, but there's a reason superheroes don't actually exist," Wasabi stated.

"Yeah, they do!" Fred protested.

"No they don't. Because there's no such thing as a supervillain. Callaghan was pretty much the exception that proved the rule. The only people with the kind of tech the police would have trouble with is us," Gogo pointed out.

"But... but..." Fred sputtered before deflating with a sigh. "I guess you're right." Honey Lemon put an encouraging hand on Fred's shoulder.

"But just because there's no supervillains doesn't mean we shouldn't help people," Hiro protested.

"We can do that without the supersuits, little man," Wasabi stated.

"Maybe," Hiro stated with a rather mulish expression.

"Superheroes or not, I still need a way to fix this problem. Baymax acting drunk in any kind of emergency situation would be a bad thing, so I need to figure out a way to nip this before it causes trouble."

"Couldn't you just force him to tell us his battery's low before it impairs his judgment?" Hiro asked. Tadashi blinked.

"What might actually work," he replied before turning back to his computer. Hiro snorted and gave his brother a fond smile while he shook his head. Tadashi ignored it in favor of putting a low battery alarm into Baymax's coding, although he frowned slightly as he worked. The others had a point about not needing to be superheroes any longer. Even the media frenzy was dying down because, honestly, what the heck was a team of superheroes supposed to do in San Fransokyo? Rescue cats from trees?

But Tadashi couldn't deny that there'd been a certain thrill to saving the day with his own two hands (and Hiro's microbots). He knew Hiro felt the same because they'd fallen asleep more than one night discussing ways they could upgrade their tech and practice working together as a team and everything. Fred would also be more than willing to continue on. But they'd only become heroes in the first place because someone had needed to step in and help. Now they didn't.

Tadashi threw his full attention back to what he was working on because he just needed to work out the kinks in the code that were showing up now that his prototype was being real-world tested. Baymax would help a lot of people, even if it wasn't as a superhero. For some reason, that thought no longer seemed quite enough any more.

~*~*~*~*~*~

"Uh, Boss? We think we've found that kid you've had us looking for," a tattooed thug stated nervously. Big Yama leaned forward.

"Where?" he demanded.

"Uh, TV," the thug replied, waving at the screen that was playing a scene from one of the private rooms in the host club Big Yama owned. "On the news." 

Yama scowled but grabbed the remote and flipped to the local news channel. The devastation at Krei Tech was still plastered all over the place, but pictures of the damage were slowly giving way to other things. Yama was aware of it - who in the city wasn't? - but hadn't worried about it much. Apparently a group of would-be superheroes had put the guy responsible behind bars.

Those so-called Big Heroes concerned him a little. There were seven of them, a lucky number to be sure, and Yama studied the vague picture of them that was on the TV intently. So far, they hadn't interfered with Yama's various business ventures and he wasn't about to go borrowing trouble by having his people go looking for them, but that didn't mean he didn't want to have some contingency plans in place just in case they decided to go after him next. Blackmail would be good. It would allow them to co-exist somewhat peacefully.

The problem at the moment was that he didn't recognize any of them. They were all wearing helmets of some sort, although the large black man in green had the least coverage as he was showing off his dreadlocks. Unfortunately, lots of large black men wore their hair in dreads in San Fransokyo. Yama could think of nearly a dozen right off the top of his head and he was certain none of them were playing superhero on the side.

The yellow one had enough covering that only the fact the suits were fairly tight made it even clear she was female. Nice shape. Well balanced. Even had wheels like his roller geisha, the Fighting Fujitas. Yama wondered what she'd look like in a kimono before shrugging the thought away. The pink one was the other obvious female and had long blonde hair, but it was impossible to say more and there were lots of blondes, both natural and bottled, in the area so that didn't help.

The other short one, the one in purple, struck Yama as a teenaged boy. There was a possibility it was a tomboy girl, but something about the stance made Yama think otherwise. That potential weak link had been paired up with the big red bruiser in what looked like a double mask, so no help there.

The blue one didn't show off anything at all, so that was a dead-end, and the white one showed as little as the yellow one and controlled those little robots. That other guy had shown exactly how dangerous those microbots could be, so that was also an out.

Yama huffed and eyed the nervous thug who'd mentioned the news. Before the guy could say anything, the news segued into a new bit Yama hadn't seen before, something that made Yama stare.

It was that kid who'd played him for a fool during a bot fight months ago and the young man who'd rescued him on a scooter of all things. The story made it clear the kid's name was Hiro Hamada and that he'd been the one to invent those microbots. Huh. No wonder those little robots had looked oddly familiar. They looked a lot like the kid's fighting bot.

Apparently the kid was making it clear he was aware the Big Hero in white had his microbots and that the guy had his consent to keep them, glad they were finally being put to good use after being stolen. It was also obviously only part of the whole interview, but Yama had what he needed. The kid was wearing an SFIT shirt. A quick online search for Hamada in SFIT's student database pulled up both the kid and his brother.

"Go to my flower garden. Tell them we've got a name and location for them."

"Yes, sir!" the thug said, saluting before running out of the room. Yama smiled as he sat down and flipped back to what he'd been watching previously. He might not be prepared to take on a group of would-be superheroes, but Hamada? Was a different story entirely.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yaqin is a Chinese name and is basically pronounced "Yeah-cheen". My decision to make her mute is a headcanon based on the fact the character has no speaking lines and seems to communicate primarily through gestures and facial expressions.


	2. Trouble On The Horizon

Chapter 2 - Trouble On The Horizon

"We're going to the convention. We're going to the convention!" Fred sang as Wasabi tried to perfectly pack his brand new used car. He paused to give Fred a look.

"You do know that this is a science convention, right?"

"Whoot! Science! This convention is going to be awesome!"

Wasabi shrugged and went back to packing.

"Oh, I hope I have everything I need," Honey Lemon said as she came up with a tote and a duffle bag.

"Oh, good. Those will fit perfectly right here. Now we just need Fred's luggage."

"What luggage? I have everything I need right here," Fred said, gesturing at himself. 

There was a long pause before Wasabi asked rhetorically, "Remind me again why I agreed to spend a couple of hours in a car with the guy who smells like con funk before the con?"

"Uh, because I bought the tickets and the hotel suite we're staying in at the hotel," Fred replied with a lazy grin. "Which reminds me, it's not too late for you guys to come too! Just say the word, and I'll get tickets for you!"

"Actually, I-" Hiro began eagerly, only to be cut off as Gogo clamped down on his shoulder.

"We have a shared project due in less than a week that we haven't even started on," she said with a warning squeeze to Hiro's shoulder.

"And I told Aunt Cass I'd be working double shifts at the café this weekend since Hiro was going to be busy with his and Gogo's project," Tadashi said, his tone making it clear that better be what Hiro was doing this weekend. Hiro deflated, but then perked up as an idea struck him.

"Hey, take Baymax, would you? He can record everything and then we can watch it and it'll be like we'd gone with you!"

Looks were exchanged along with smiles.

"That's a great idea, Hiro!" Honey Lemon enthused as she hugged the boy.

"I'll get his case so you can recharge him," Tadashi said.

"In that case, make sure you get him to record the panel on Dynamic Electromagnetism. I think it might give me some ideas for my bike," Gogo added.

"What is a convention?" Baymax asked as he waddled over to the car.

"It's a magical place where like-minded people can learn and show off what they know to each other," Fred explained, gesturing in the air as he did.

"Ah. Then I shall endeavor to learn much at this convention."

Meanwhile, Hiro surreptitiously slipped Wasabi a roll of cash.

"See if you can't win me something, would you?"

"You do know the odds are vastly in favor of the house, right?" Wasabi replied even as he accepted the money. Hiro shrugged and gave him a grin.

"Maybe, but there's a reason why geniuses like us tend to win a lot of money in Las Edos."

Wasabi sighed and put away the money before Tadashi returned lugging Baymax's open case.

"Here we go. Baymax, buddy, it might be best if you were deflated during the trip. I'm satisfied with my care."

Baymax waddled over and deflated, the suitcase sealing him in. Tadashi then handed the case to Wasabi.

"Take good care of him, okay? I haven't been graded on him yet."

"Will do," Wasabi promised as he packed Baymax where he'd originally planned to put Fred's luggage. Soon, goodbyes were said and people were buckled in and they were on their way.

Gogo grabbed Hiro and ruffled his hair while saying, "Come on, nerd. It's Friday morning and we've got a whole weekend ahead of us. Let's get cracking on our project."

"Right. See you later, Tadashi!"

"Wear your helmet and don't forget class!" Tadashi called before heading inside. Hiro just waved him off as he climbed up behind Gogo on her bike.

"Let's get this over with."

~*~*~*~*~*~

_12 hours later_

Gogo stretched with her hands above her head, making her back crackle and pop.

"Oh, yeah," she groaned as she swung her arms back down. Hiro pouted at her from the workbench he was currently sitting on.

"I can't believe you made me work here all day," he complained. "You didn't even let me go to class."

"You only had the one and you've got an A in it anyway," she pointed out, "And now our project is done."

"Yep! And we're still missing the convention. Ow!" Gogo had punched Hiro's arm.

"Quit your whining and woman up. They're recording it for us and now we've got the entire weekend ahead of us. Besides, did you really want to spend eight or more hours cooped up in a car with Fred? Who, by the way, will be wearing the same clothes for four days straight?"

"Well, when you put it like that..." Hiro hemmed as he jumped down from the workbench. Gogo wrapped an arm around the boy's shoulders, silently reveling in the fact she was taller, at least for now, even as she offered, "Hey, how about I take you to a roller derby? There's one tonight in Oakohama."

"Roller derby? Should've known it'd be your kind of thing. But sure," Hiro agreed as he stripped off his hoodie.

"Uh, what're you doing?" Gogo asked with a smack of her gum, gesturing at the hoodie.

"Huh? Oh. I'm pretty certain the tracking device Tadashi has on me is in my hoodie," Hiro replied. Gogo's eyebrows rose.

"Tadashi has a _what_ on you?"

"It's not like that," Hiro protested. When Gogo just gave him a look, he explained, "It's really not. Look, when our parents died, Tadashi took it _really_ badly. The doctors had to put him on anti-anxiety medication and even on the medicine he'd still freak whenever he didn't know where I or Aunt Cass were. Full blown panic attack. Aunt Cass couldn't even take him to school, it was so bad."

"He's not like that now," Gogo stated with a frown, even as she wondered what this had to do with anything, although she was starting to suspect.

"Well, no, because of the tracking devices. They were Aunt Cass's compromise. Tadashi gets to know where we are at all times but he can't use it to violate our privacy. If we even _think_ he is, both Aunt Cass and I have the right to demand he remove the tracking devices."

"That... sounds fair, I guess," Gogo conceded. "But if Tadashi's not allowed to violate your privacy, then why are you taking off your hoodie?"

"Because he totally does violate my privacy. He doesn't mean to, I know, but he still freaks when he thinks I'm in danger. But if I complain, he'll take off the tracking device even though I _know_ he'll end up with a panic attack every time I'm out of his sight. Besides, it's useful."

"Useful?" Gogo asked as she pushed out the door of Hiro's lab while Hiro left the hoodie behind.

"Yeah," Hiro agreed as they walked to Gogo's bike, helmets in hand. "Like when I was bot-fighting. By the time he realized where I was and managed to get there, I'd have won the pot and need a quick getaway. Tada! Tadashi to the rescue! And I didn't have to do a thing except climb on his bike and put up with a short lecture."

"You're a little brat, aren't you?" Gogo stated fondly.

"Hey, you love me," Hiro replied with a grin. "Anyway, we're not doing anything that would require sending a panicked Tadashi to our rescue and he doesn't really need to know where we're going, so we're leaving the hoodie."

"Fair enough," Gogo agreed as she pulled on her helmet and kicked up the kickstand. Hiro settled in behind her.

"Ready?" she asked.

"Definitely."

They took off with a roar of the engine. There was a few seconds of silence after they left before several shapes darted off after them, the sound of wheels and dark laughter echoing as they moved.

~*~*~*~*~*~

It was a bad habit, Tadashi knew, and one he definitely needed to break now that Hiro was a teenager and Tadashi himself was in college, but it really did make him feel better knowing he could just glance at an app on his phone and know where his family was. Still, he was trying to get out of the habit of checking it and probably would've succeeded by now if Hiro hadn't decided to get into bot-fighting and nearly giving Tadashi a heart attack on a fairly regular basis.

Of course, Hiro hadn't gone bot-fighting since they'd gotten arrested... which was quite awhile back now. There was the superhero thing, but that was over and done with now, even if everyone still talked about it, and Tadashi had been fully involved with that. So, really, Tadashi's only excuse for keeping Hiro bugged with a tracking device was to help with Tadashi's own insecurities. Damn it. And he'd thought he was doing so well, too. He hadn't needed the medication in _ages_.

So, it was with a sense of guilt, that Tadashi set the bin of dirty dishes in the sink and pulled out his phone to check on his family. Well, brother. Aunt Cass was obviously still in the next room and her cell phone - which held her tracker - still on her person. Hiro's should still be at the lab at SFIT, like it had been all day, even when he was supposed to be in class. It wasn't now. It was moving at some speed towards one of the rougher parts of Oakohama.

Tadashi frowned and tapped his fingers on the counter. He wasn't stupid and knew for a fact his bratty little brother had taken advantage of the tracker to use Tadashi as a getaway vehicle more than once. But he was also fairly certain Hiro didn't know the location of the tracker, despite Hiro's claims to the contrary.

The speed the little dot on the map was moving suggested that, whatever was going on, Gogo was involved. The question was, what was going on? Were they going out for some food - unlikely unless Gogo knew about some hole-in-the-wall she hadn't yet dragged Tadashi to - or joyriding or running from the paparazzi that still sometimes followed Hiro? Tadashi didn't know. 

He debated calling but Hiro would likely either blow him off or, worse, sell him out to Gogo. Calling Gogo was out because that would mean admitting to how he knew they'd gone somewhere. Not that randomly showing up would be much better, because he'd still have to explain his stalker tendencies to Gogo of all people.

There was a reason Tadashi had never mentioned the trackers to his friends. He also didn't want them to think he had put tracking devices on them. He hadn't. He'd be lying if he said he hadn't considered it, but it would've been a huge breach of privacy and, honestly, not knowing where his friends were didn't cause the same panic as not knowing his family's location. And Hiro's current location was not ideal, which brought Tadashi back to his original problem.

Ah, hell, he was going to go, wasn't he? If Hiro was in trouble, Tadashi would be damned if he stayed put. And if Hiro wasn't in trouble... Well, Tadashi could probably manage to avoid being seen and just give Hiro a lecture later about _calling him_ before suddenly taking off somewhere. Maybe he could offer a compromise that, if Hiro did call, Tadashi would start removing the trackers.

"You okay, sweetie?"

Tadashi startled when he realized Aunt Cass was by the door that separated the kitchen from the rest of the house before smiling at her.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Hiro just texted me. He's done and asking for a ride home," Tadashi lied - and one day he'd be worried about how well he did that - while he put his phone into his jeans pocket. "Will you be okay on your own while I pick him up?"

"I'll be fine! It's nearly closing time anyway. Go grab your brother and we'll order in pizza or something, okay? Oh, and thanks for all your help today, sweetie," Aunt Cass replied, bussing him on the cheek as she moved through the kitchen.

"No problem, Aunt Cass," Tadashi replied even as he pulled off his apron and hung it up. He then went to fetch his hat, helmet, and keys. He had a brother to hunt down.

~*~*~*~*~*~

_Earlier that afternoon_

Fred had apparently booked them a multi-room suite in the biggest, fanciest hotel-slash-casino adjacent the convention center. The place was fancy and Honey Lemon felt severely under-dressed in her travel-rumpled clothes. The bellhop hadn't even let her carry her bags. Once they were safely ensconced in their room, she rounded on Fred.

"This is _way_ too much, Fred. It's... it's too much!" she exclaimed.

"Can you really afford this?" Wasabi wondered as he moved Baymax's case to the center of the living room connecting everything. "I mean, I know your parents are rich, but..."

"Hey, I have a ton of investments and stuff. I could live off the interest for, like, all of our lives combined. I might as well use some of it on stuff like this," Fred replied easily as he bounced down onto a sofa. "Anyway, there's three rooms and each has two beds. I kinda thought the others would come, you know, so one was supposed to be for Tadashi and the little dude while Wasabi and I shared and you and Gogo had a room. As it is, we each get our own and how cool is that! Oh, oh, we need to wake up Baymax so he can film the room so they know what they're missing out on! Should I or do you want to...?"

Honey Lemon exchanged looks with Wasabi and they both shrugged.

"How about we all do it?" Honey Lemon suggested.

"Cool!"

"On three?" Wasabi asked. When the other nodded, he counted, "One. Two. Three."

"OW!" all three of them chorused. The red case beeped and opened so Baymax could inflate.

"Hello. I am Baymax. Are we at the convention?"

"Not yet, buddy. We're at the hotel next to the convention, but you totes need to film this place so the others know what they missed," Fred replied, bouncing in his seat. Baymax blinked.

"Very well," he agreed before he started to wander the suite.

"I'm going to change real quick while he's doing that and then we can head next door to the convention!" Honey Lemon all but sang out as she grabbed her bags and headed into one of the rooms.

"Good idea. I'm gonna wash up a bit," Wasabi agreed while giving Fred a pointed out. The other ignored it or perhaps just didn't notice.

"I'll just hang with Baymax, then. Oh, Baymax! Have you seen this yet? Check it out!"

While Fred showed the robot the mini-kitchenette, Wasabi shook his head and headed for the en suite bathroom for the room he decided to claim as his. At least he wouldn't be stuck smelling Fred at night.

Not long after found the group trying to work their way through the crowded lobby, the noise of slot machines ringing through the air. 

"We've got some time before the opening ceremonies tonight. Wanna play a game or two while we wait?" Fred asked. "My treat!"

Wasabi grimaced as he felt the money Hiro had given him burning a figurative hole in his pocket.

"Hiro actually already gave me some. I was thinking of losing about ten bucks of it and giving the rest back, claiming I'd only managed to break about even," he admitted.

"Break even? With the way you play card games?" Fred asked with a shake of his head. "No, no, no, you need to go play some poker. Or, ooh! Blackjack!"

Fred grabbed Wasabi and started pushing him away from the slot-machines and towards the tables further into the casino. Honey Lemon followed after, unaware of Baymax stumbling to keep up. The robot stopped when someone brushed past in a huff, dropping a coin on the floor. Gingerly, Baymax bent over and picked up the coin.

"Excuse me, but you seem to have dropped your shiny metal disk," Baymax began, only to blink when he couldn't distinguish the person who'd brushed past from the crowd. Looking around, he saw people putting the coins into the machines, not unlike how Hiro had taught him how to obtain gummy bears. Turning, he faced a machine and inserted the coin. When nothing happened, Baymax looked in either direction, observing what the other people were doing. Then he looked back at the machine he was facing and pressed the button on the front. The machine lit up, flashed some symbols, and then lit up even more as it started making noise.

"There you are, Baymax! You need to keep up with us! Oh... oh my!" Honey Lemon said when she found the robot, Fred on her heels as he'd left Wasabi at a table.

"I seem to have won something called a 'jackpot'," Baymax announced before scanning his companions. "According to your neurotransmitter levels, this has made you happy." 

"Yep, we're happy alright," Fred assured the robot before he and Honey Lemon exchanged looks and grinned.

" _Experiment_!" Honey Lemon sang as she dragged Baymax to another slot machine while Fred quickly gathered the winnings from the one they were leaving. He chuckled as he did. It looked like bringing Baymax had been a great idea!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Raise your hand if you thought I wasn't going to use Baymax, Fred, Honey Lemon, or Wasabi in this story when I sent them off at the beginning of the chapter. Okay, now how many of you noticed I mentioned the location of Hiro's tracker back in _A Few Seconds Difference_?
> 
> Las Edos is very obviously a play on Las Vegas and, yes, it does actually take eight or more hours to drive between San Francisco and Las Vegas. Part of it is there's a ton of mountains in the way, but the rest of it is the simple fact America really is that big. You could drive from London to Paris faster. Flight time is about the same as London to Frankfurt, if you want a more 'as the crow flies' measurement. In other words, while the rest of the team is still involved, they're a bit too far to really help. *evil grin*
> 
> Oakohama is a combination of Oakland, which is right next to San Francisco, and Yokohama, which is right next to Tokyo. They both fulfill similar roles for their more famous neighboring city and the name mash-up was just too awesome not to pull off.
> 
> Also, yes, we're getting into my headcanon for the tracking devices. I don't even know if they're canon or ascended fanon. I can't remember it coming up in the movie but I certainly believe it's true, as it explains way too much about Tadashi's ability to show up in the nick of time in a part of town he's obviously unfamiliar with. But while it's usually played off for laughs by the fandom, it is a violation of privacy and I'm addressing that, even while I'm giving an explanation that doesn't make Tadashi come across as a creepily obsessed stalker. He is obsessed and he does have stalker tendencies, but he'd doing his best not to be creepy about it.
> 
> I'm still working on _Father Knows Best_ but I seriously had so much written for this before I even posted the first chapter that you might see more of this before you see that. Sorry to everyone currently on the edge of their seats on that one.


	3. Fujitas

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For those wanting a music list, I've got "Figure It Out" by Royal Blood as my roller derby theme. You might also try "The Streets of San Fransokyo" from the movie soundtrack as well.

Chapter 3 - Fujitas

The roller derby was awesome. Hiro cheered alongside Gogo when the jammer managed to get past the two girls attempting to knock her out and win two more points for her team, jumping them into the lead, right before the buzzer sounded to end the jam. Once the buzzer sounded, Gogo stood, dragging Hiro with her.

"Come on, let's hit the concession stand while they set up for the next jam," she suggested. Hiro, who was a growing teenaged boy who had yet to eat dinner, nodded eagerly and followed. Once they were laden down with soda, shrimp chips, Kit-Kats in various flavors, and two bags of gummy bears, they started to debate trying to reclaim their previous seats or stay in the food court. Then it happened.

A loud burst of malicious laughter rang out from the doors, making people turn to see what looked like a team of roller derby girls with a geisha theme enter the building. Except they weren't like any roller derby girls Hiro had ever seen before. They were armed with weapons, for one, and everyone around them drew back in fear even as silence started to spread through the crowd. Then Gogo was dragging him down and behind a pillar with a hiss of, "Shit, Fujitas."

"Who?" Hiro asked as he sneaked a peek at the gang of girls. One of them, the one in green with the heavy-looking parasol and eyepatch on her left eye, looked oddly familiar.

"Don't mind us. We're just here to pick something up," one of girls called.

"Keep on keeping on," another suggested with a giggle. Soft murmurs started back up as people went back to what they were doing while the gang went down towards the crowded seats by the roller rink.

"They work for Big Yama," Gogo explained once the gang was out of sight due to the crowd.

"Yama? Like that guy I hustled in my last bot fight?" Hiro muttered. It would explain why the girl looked familiar. It was the announcer from his last bot-fight. She looked different in the kimono-like costume and face paint.

"What?" Gogo asked, looking honestly surprised.

"Yeah. He fought with a bot he called Little Yama. The look on his face when Megabot took out Little Yama was _priceless_ ," Hiro enthused, although he kept his voice down since Gogo hadn't let him rise from their hiding spot.

"Wait a minute. You conned Big Yama, aka the Mountain, in a bot fight?!"

"Yeah, why?"

Gogo smacked Hiro.

"You idiot! Do you have a death wish or are you just that stupid?"

"Ow! What's the big deal?"

"The big deal? You mean you don't know? Big Yama is the biggest crime lord in San Fransokyo and you conned him during his favorite pastime. You are so dead!"

"So I hustled the guy. So what?"

"Look, I work as a bike courier and bike couriers tend to have their ears to the ground so we don't accidentally get ourselves caught up in border disputes between gangs or something. Word on the street is that Big Yama has been looking for the punk kid who hustled him a few months ago. And you've been on the news lately, idiot."

"Oh crap," Hiro whispered, paling as what Gogo was saying finally got through. "But why? It was just one time."

"Supposedly you sold him out to the police."

"I didn't go to the police. I got caught," Hiro protested.

"Yeah, well, that's not going to fly with someone like Big Yama. From his point-of-view, you humiliated him, got out of any sort of punishment, and then narced to the police."

Malicious laughter from the other side of the rink interrupted their quiet argument. Gogo frowned.

"We need to get you out of here before the Fujitas see you."

Gogo put her food down on the closest table and did the same with Hiro's, only to pause and grab the two bags of gummy bears. She shoved them back at Hiro.

"Put them under your shirt and pretend you're a girl," she ordered even as she snagged their helmets.

"What?" Hiro demanded.

"Just do it!" she hissed.

"I don't have anything to hold them put," Hiro whispered back urgently. Gogo cursed and dragged him into the girls' bathroom just off the food court and into the largest stall. Hiro started to protest, only to squawk when she pulled up his shirt. Gogo took the bags of gummy bears from him and pressed them to his chest.

"Hold them there," she ordered before grabbing the toilet paper and pulling. She used it to wrap the gummy bears in place before yanking his shirt back down. Then she used her fingers to part Hiro's hair on the left side - his left, not hers - before pinning the largest part back with a pink barrette she pulled out of her pocket.

"Where'd you get that?" Hiro asked as Gogo snapped it into place.

"It's Honey Lemon's. I borrowed it one day and haven't remembered to give it back yet. Purse your lips," Gogo replied before applying pink lip gloss on his lips. She took a step back and gave him a critical look over.

"That'll have to do for a disguise until we can get you out of the building. Just keep your head down, don't speak, and _don't look at them_. Now come on. That toilet paper won't last long."

Gogo pulled him out of the girls' restroom only to freeze once outside. Apparently the Fujitas had been circling the room and had made it to the food court while they were disguising Hiro.

"Well, well. What do we have here?" one asked with a dark chuckle. Wow, did they have a dangerous aura this close up. Hiro kept his head down and shuffled behind Gogo, who was bristling like a cat. He crossed his arms over his chest in an attempt to both hide the robot design on front and emphasize his fake boobs, only to wince when it dislodged a bag of gummy bears from their temporary binding. His arm managed to keep it from falling and he resolved not to move his arms until they were safe.

"I don't suppose you skate?" one asked as she looked Gogo over.

"Sometimes," Gogo admitted with a dark look on her face.

"Why don't you skate with us, nee-chan?" the youngest-looking of the bunch asked.

"I'm Korean. I don't do kimono," Gogo replied sharply.

"Aw, too bad," the one with yellow-blonde hair that had to be dyed or bleached or something cooed.

"What about you, little girl?"

Hiro jerked when he realized they were talking to him and he didn't dare answer back because his voice was a bit too deep for the girl he was pretending to be. He lost his grip on the bag of gummy bears that had slid free as a result of his movement and they fell out of his shirt and hit the ground with a smack. Both Hiro and Gogo stiffened. The Fujitas laughed.

"Stealing candy by stuffing it in your training bra, are we?" one laughed.

"Small time," another jeered while a third picked up the bag of candy.

"Tell you what; we keep this and you can go."

Hiro quickly nodded. Gogo also nodded once, sharp and precise, before grabbing Hiro and dragging him out of the door. She relaxed minutely once they were out in the cool night air, but she didn't stop and only let him go to toss him his helmet and put on her own.

"Get on," she ordered. Hiro pulled the barrette out of his hair, wiped off the lip gloss with the back of his hand and pulled on his helmet before he scrambled onto the back of the bike, only to freeze when a familiar scooter caught his attention.

"Wait, Gogo!" he called when Gogo pealed out of her parking spot.

"What? Why? We got insanely lucky back there and I'm not pressing my luck right now."

"But that was Tadashi's bike back there! The tracker must not be in a my hoodie! He's still back there!"

"If he's smart, and he usually is, he's already following us," Gogo replied as she took a sharp corner, neither turning nor looking back, "but I'm not letting you anywhere near the Fujitas. If anything, we should be taking you to the cops and requesting protection. I would if I had any proof they were after you. As it is, you're keeping your head down and your nose out of trouble. Got it?"

"Got it," Hiro agreed sullenly. He couldn't help looking back, though.

~*~*~*~*~*~

It was a roller rink and there was a roller derby going on. Figures. Tadashi sighed and glanced at his phone, only to frown when he saw the dot of Hiro's tracker moving rapidly away. They left? Either they'd caught a glimpse of him or... well, the atmosphere felt a bit off in here. He frowned at the weirdly subdued people at the roller rink but shrugged and turned to leave. Tadashi exited the building and started to where he'd parked his bike, looking at the GPS tracking app on his phone as he did. 

A girl on skates with red hair that had to be dyed as it was shade too close to garnet to be natural and a rather revealing roller derby costume patterned after a kimono skated between him and his bike long before he reached it. The heavy, stylized face paint gave her an oddly cruel look despite the smile on her face. One sleeve of her kimono dangled down, revealing a bit more of her than Tadashi thought was really appropriate, including a full sleeve tattoo. She was also carrying a bat studded with nails. Feeling a bit alarmed at the sight of an obvious weapon, he stopped.

"Hey, pretty boy," the woman purred, her smiling widening into something almost vicious.

"Uh, hey. If you'll excuse me, I was just leaving," Tadashi stated as he pasted on a smile, trying to edge past her and to his scooter.

"What's the hurry, handsome?" a second woman dressed much like the first asked as she suddenly blocked his way. Tadashi took a step back only to freeze when he became aware of someone behind him. A quick look showed there were six of the ladies, all dressed like roller derby geisha, all armed with some sort of weapon, and they had him surrounded. He suddenly wished he'd shown up with his supersuit or at least some sort of weapon. Another quick glance around showed he was alone - anyone who'd normally hang in the parking lot at events like these had either fled for the safety of the building or left entirely. Tadashi had a sinking feeling no one would come if he called for help.

"So what's a gorgeous guy like you doing out here all on your own?" the first roller geisha asked, giving Tadashi a very obvious once over. It made him realize he hadn't put on a sweater or jacket after ending his shift, leaving him in just his black v-neck tee and his skinny jeans. Tadashi suddenly felt horribly under-dressed.

"Did baby brother have an early bedtime?" a different one with purple hair and a spiked parasol asked. Wait, what?

"I, uh, think you have me confused with someone else," Tadashi suggested with a strained smile even as he continued looking for an opening to get away from them. Sure, he knew karate but the odds against six armed individuals weren't good.

"Oh, so this isn't you in this picture?" the one with yellow-blonde hair and incredibly short shorts under her kimono asked, holding out her phone so he could see the picture displayed on it. It was a still from the interview Hiro had done, taken after Mai Rogers had decided Tadashi needed to take part. While Hiro was the focus of the picture, it was very definitely Tadashi next to him. Tadashi stiffened at the sight of it and realized a bit too late that was the wrong reaction.

"Oh, it is you, isn't it?" the redhead purred, grin very definitely malicious.

"Where's your baby brother, handsome?" the tall one with bluish-dyed hair and an eyepatch on her right eye demanded. "Big Yama wants to see him."

Tadashi tightened his grip on his phone before snapping off a side kick at the tall girl in green as she had the least dangerous-looking weapon, namely a parasol with a very sturdy shaft. It caught her by surprise and knocked her off of her feet, but she'd automatically retaliated as she fell and thumped him across the back with her parasol even as he tried running past her. He stumbled under the force of the blow, which slowed him down enough for a set of chains to come out and wrap around his feet, allowing the girl holding the other end to pull him down. Tadashi dropped his phone as he caught himself on his hands, hissing in pain as asphalt pressed into his palms.

Then the gang was on top of him. Tadashi struggled and shouted and managed to knock two of them back, but then the one in green smacked him with her parasol again, this time in the solar plexus. Tadashi instinctively curled in as the breath was knocked out of him, which gave the gang the leeway they needed to force his arms behind his back and bind them with a twisted piece of silk and bind his legs with the fabric as well. They yanked him upright, one holding each arm and one behind him with her hands digging into his shoulders.

"Bad move, pretty boy," the one in green hissed while the others laughed. Then she grabbed Tadashi's chin and forced his head up as she asked, "Where's Hiro Hamada?"

Tadashi clenched his teeth and glared at her. The woman scowled and started to dig her nails into his face.

"Ah, Tsubaki, don't ruin that pretty face!" the redhead whined.

"Yeah. There are other ways of making him talk," the bleached blonde added.

"We might not need him to," the one carrying metal fans stated, holding up Tadashi's phone. Tadashi felt his blood freeze in his veins because there, clearly visible on his phone, was the GPS tracking app and it was focused on a dot clearly labeled 'Hiro'. They had the information they obviously wanted and Tadashi was horrified that he was the source.

"No!" Tadashi growled, struggling against his captors' hold. "If you touch him-"

"You'll what, pretty boy?" asked the tall one with the bluish hair even as the one in green, Tsubaki, hit him in the gut with her parasol again.

"Gag him," Tsubaki ordered. They did so, which was a little terrifying as it made it that much harder for Tadashi to try and get his breath back. Then Tsubaki pulled out a phone and barked some orders into it.

"Bring the vans over. We've got a lead... and some bait."

Two unmarked vans pulled up soon after and four men, two from each van, wearing luchadore masks, swung out of the front seats. Two of them helped three of the roller geisha into the back of their van while the other two helped drag Tadashi into the back of the second van, the remaining three Fujitas piling in after him. Tsubaki took the front passenger seat while the man whose seat she'd stolen climbed into the back and helped hold Tadashi down.

"Don't worry, pretty boy. We'll take _good_ care of you," the redhead giggled as she pulled off Tadashi's hat and ran her fingers through his hair. Tadashi tossed his head, trying to get away from her touch, as it was unwelcome and brought up bad memories to boot. The man beside him growled and held Tadashi in place.

"If Botan wants to play with you, you play nice with Botan," the man stated threateningly.

"That's sweet, but you don't have to hold him still. It's more fun when they struggle," the redhead, Botan, replied with a vicious grin.

"Leave it, Botan," Tsubaki ordered as she put Tadashi's phone on the dash where the driver could see. "See this? Cut them off."

"Right," the driver agreed. And then the vans were off.

~*~*~*~*~*~

"Where are you going?" Hiro asked when Gogo took a turn that would take them further away from either Hiro's home or their university and picked her speed back up.

"There's a van following us," Gogo replied. Hiro looked behind them and sure enough, there was a plain, unadorned van taking the corner and speeding as if trying to catch them up.

"Hold on tight. I'm going to try and lose them," Gogo ordered before taking a hard right into an alley. There was a shriek of brakes as the van slowed before zooming past the alley entrance.

"Lost them!" Hiro crowed. Then he let out a cry of alarm when he looked forward and saw the other end of the alley blocked by a second van much like the first.

"Lean left," Gogo ordered before taking the only turn available to them in the alley. She burst into the street right in front of the van they'd just lost. Gogo dodged it and the truck coming from the opposite direction and got them into the opposite alley. They managed two blocks that way until a fence blocked their progress.

Gogo took another turn, drove across the street in front of the van that had been keeping pace with them from the street, and managed to drift under the flimsy pay-to-pass barrier of a parking structure. The van just broke the barrier as it followed them. Gogo tried losing it by dodging between parked cars but, when she headed back for the exit, the other van was there.

Gogo cursed and took the ramp to the upper levels, the second van following right on their heels. It didn't let up and got entirely too close to the rear of the bike for Hiro's comfort right up until the reached the open top level and Gogo whipped around a turn the van couldn't manage. It had to keep going or risk being hit by the other van, which stopped to block the ramp. Gogo, meanwhile, headed for the elevator. It dinged open just as they arrived, revealing the Fujitas, who quickly spread out and blocked both the elevator and the stairs.

"Shit," Gogo cursed before heading full speed towards the far edge only to stop when she reached it.

"Can we make that building?" Hiro asked, pointing at the roof of the closest building. Gogo shook her head.

"On my own, I'd risk it but with your added weight, we'd never make it."

"Then we need to try and get past the Fujitas and to the stairs," Hiro suggested. Gogo looked down over the edge at the train tracks that separated them from the closest building and frowned the way she did when calculating something and then nodded.

"Oh, Hiro! You can run but you can't hide!" Laughter followed that statement even as Gogo suddenly pushed Hiro's head down and ducked herself. The wind whistled as a bat just missed them and then Gogo was kicking the Fujita who'd swung at them and maneuvering the bike away, swerving to avoid the spiked ball on the end of a chain that was aimed for them. The van not blocking the exit came right for them once they were out in the open.

"Lean back!" Gogo commanded as she gunned the bike's engine, popped a wheelie, and used it to ramp them up the front of the van and then over onto the top of the parked cars. They drove on top of the cars, using the height to dodge the Fujitas and even jump over two of them before hitting the stairwell and using it to go down a level. The Fujitas clamored after them. Gogo didn't stop, however. She aimed the bike straight for the open wall.

"Whoa! Wait! I thought you said we couldn't make it!" Hiro yelped as they zoomed forward.

"Not to the building," Gogo agreed before yanking on the handlebars of the bike. They hit something Hiro didn't see before flying sideways through the air over the edge of the building. Hiro wailed in alarm, clutching Gogo tight. Then they hit the top of the elevated train right as it roared past, the drift allowing Gogo to stop them on top instead of falling off.

"The train, however...," she stated with an audible smirk. Hiro let out an odd noise as he realized they were still alive and rapidly leaving their pursuit behind.

"You okay?" Gogo asked, turning to look at him.

"That. Was. AWESOME! Tadashi's going to kill you, though, when he catches up."

"Eh, I'll deal with it when it comes up," Gogo replied with a shrug. "Now let's get you home."

~*~*~*~*~*~

"They're good," Tsubaki stated as they watched the train leave.

"And crazy. Not even I would attempt something like that," Ayame added as she fiddled with her skull barrette. 

"We're not going to catch up with him while he's with that driver," Ran, the tallest of the group, pointed out.

"No worries. We've still got pretty boy and his GPS," Tsubaki replied.

"What's pretty boy's phone say?" Botan asked, poking the bleached blonde. The blonde, Hinata, snarled at the redhead.

"I'm looking! Huh. There's another marker. And Hiro's is getting closer to it. 'Aunt Cass', huh?"

"Didn't that interview say they live with their aunt?" Sakura asked as she closed her metal fans and tucked them into her obi.

"Yes, it did," Ran confirmed.

"Load up, girls," Tsubaki ordered. "We've got a new lead to follow."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Inspiration for this story (as well as the luchadores masks) comes from [Ryan Lang's concept art](http://ryanlangdraws.tumblr.com/post/102651562704/more-big-hero-6-well-i-just-put-up-my-website).
> 
> Shrimp-flavored chips are really popular in Korea. Kit-Kats do come in various flavors, especially in Japan where they not only have various fruit flavors but flavors like soy sauce or wasabi.
> 
> The Fujitas were concept villains who didn't make it into the final movie except for the subtle nod that was the bot fight announcer. It looks like there were only supposed to be three, but there's two different sets that show up the most in the concept art and it takes five minimum for a roller derby jam - which is the length of time where the participants in the roller derby skate and the designated jammer can score points by passing the others - so I'm claiming there's six of them. 
> 
> The hairstyles of the Fujitas in [this picture (click for link)](http://images6.fanpop.com/image/photos/37700000/Big-Hero-6-Concept-Art-Deleted-Villains-The-Fujitas-big-hero-6-37708950-455-763.png) really resemble flowers, so I named them after the flowers their hairstyle/hair decorations most represent. This is also why I had Yama refer to them as his flower garden in the first chapter. Anyway, the tall one with bluish hair is Ran (orchid), the short one with the skulls and purple hair is Ayame (Iris), the one in the middle with the red hair is Botan (peony). And since I had a flower theme going on, the girls in [this picture](http://img1.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20141128193002/disney/images/c/c4/Fujitas_Jim_Kim_concept_art_.jpg) also have flower names. The blonde is Hinata (sunflower), the one in green who looks a lot like the announcer in the movie is Tsubaki (camellia), and the one with fans is Sakura (cherry blossom).


	4. Chase

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry about the late update. Real life kicked my butt at the same time this decided to give me troubles. I literally re-wrote the scene where Aunt Cass and the Fujitas meet three times because Gogo and Hiro couldn't decide when exactly they popped into that conversation and no one wanted to write the chase scene until I'd gotten that figured out. *headdesk*
> 
> Anyway, those doing the playlist might want to add Finale by Madeon to the list.

Chapter 4 - Chase

Getting off the train was a bit trickier than getting on, but Gogo managed it without too much trouble. She was so going to have to repair and detail her bike after this, though. Oh well. She'd been planning on giving it some upgrades anyway.

However, it didn't settle well that the Fujitas had caught up to them earlier. Had they recognized Hiro earlier? If so, why had they let them leave at all? And if they hadn't recognized him, how had they found them? Gogo might not have been taking the fastest route she knew but that was because she'd been trying to make sure no one _could_ follow them.

Gogo was suddenly glad the storage compartment Hiro was sitting on contained her supersuit. It was silly to carry it around, but the idea she wasn't far from her weapons at any point in time was soothing. With that in mind, she looked around to make certain there were no odd vans, gang members on rollerskates, or anyone else following them. When everything proved clear, she headed straight for the Lucky Cat.

~*~*~*~*~*~

Aunt Cass locked the door and turned the sign to closed with a relieved sigh. Then, with a guilty little look around, put a Help Wanted sign in the window. She should probably talk to her boys first, but she remembered the last time Tadashi had finals. She'd managed to gain Hiro's help when she lost Tadashi to his rush of finishing essays and projects but, with both her geniuses in college, she had a feeling she wasn't going to get much help from them this year. Not without hurting their grades and she wasn't going to do that to them. It was bad enough all the extra attention her café had gained thanks to that interview had required her to grab Tadashi on a Friday as well as the rest of the weekend. He'd never once complained, however.

Still, extra help was not only welcomed but quickly becoming a necessity. So the sign. She'd deal with her boys when they noticed either the sign or the result. Hopefully, hiring someone now would let her boys get past the whole vetting thing they did before allowing her to be alone with them.

Cass rolled her eyes at that thought as she moved to finish cleaning up. There was a reason she was still single and it was only partially because she hadn't met the right guy yet. Now if only Mrs. Matsuda would quit trying to set her up with every halfway handsome man who entered the café.

Then a spiked ball on a chain smashed through the window of her café's door. Cass yelped and quickly ducked behind the counter. Someone tugged on the chain attached to the ball, making it drag up the door, marring the wood and breaking the rest of the glass. Cass winced, only for her eyes to widen when she saw an arm reach in and undo the lock on the door. Several costumed women with elaborate hairstyles tripped in on skates, giggling like this was some sort of game.

"Come out, Hiro!" one called out over the soft laughter.

"We know you're home!" another added with a breathless giggle.

Cass felt her blood freeze. What did these people want with her nephew? Then it got worse.

"Big brother says 'hi'," one of the women said as she tossed something at the counter. It was Tadashi's hat, the one he never went anywhere without. Without even thinking about the consequences, the older woman stood.

"Where's my nephew, you... you window breakers!?" she demanded to know.

"We're not interested in you, old lady," one of the women said. Cass bristled at the insult.

"We're here for Hiro Hamada," another stated.

"Well, he's not here and I'll thank you to leave! After you tell me where you got that hat!"

"Don't lie to us. We know he's here," the woman in green insisted, holding up a very familiar phone. Cass forced herself to breath past the lump in her throat because that was Tadashi's phone and his tracking app and it clearly showed Hiro in the building with her. Then the floor seemed to drop out from under her when the kitchen door suddenly swung open.

~*~*~*~*~*~

When Gogo pulled her suit out of the seat compartment Hiro had previously been seated on, he gave her a knowing look.

"Can it," she threatened.

"So why are you getting that out?" Hiro asked.

"They called you by name at the parking garage, dweeb. Up until then, I was thinking they'd somehow followed us but if they recognized you, they had no reason to let us go in the first place. Something's up and since your face and address are practically splayed across the TV right now, I'm officially putting you under the protective custody of the Big Heroes and we're going to get the police to do the same, okay?"

Hiro shrugged and said, "Suit yourself," before realizing he'd accidentally made a pun and slapping himself for it. Gogo gave him a look but didn't say anything.

"I'm going to borrow your garage to change in, okay?"

"Yeah, sure. I'm gonna go tell Aunt Cass I apparently need witness protection or something," Hiro replied, heading up the back steps while Gogo went down the incline into the garage. He paused once he was safely inside and sighed. Why couldn't his life be simple? Then the sound of giggles filtered from the front of the building.

Hiro froze. They were here. The Fujitas were in his aunt's café. Before he could flee out the back door to Gogo, Aunt Cass's voice rang out.

"Where's my nephew, you... you window breakers?!"

She wouldn't leave if she thought he was in danger, Hiro realized in a panic. He suddenly wished Aunt Cass would've let him and Tadashi build that robotic security system for her but she'd put her foot down, citing the number of times they'd shorted a breaker or other damage to the house's electrical system and saying, "This is a restaurant, not a fortress!" Hiro wished it was a fortress right now. At least then his family would be safe.

Hiro looked around frantically until his attention caught on the very visibly displayed fire extinguisher. Aunt Cass had installed it after yet another accident in their garage/lab, as well as another down there, and made sure both her boys knew how to use them. Hiro unhooked it from the wall because it would work as a temporary weapon while he grabbed Aunt Cass. Thus, with his makeshift weapon in hand, Hiro crept to the door separating the kitchen from the restaurant proper, getting ready to make his move.

"Don't lie to us," he heard one of the Fujitas say. "We know he's here."

Hiro heard Aunt Cass's breath hitch and he couldn't stand to wait any longer. With a determined look, he pulled the pin even as he hit his back against the swinging door so he'd swing out with it. Then he aimed and sprayed at anyone he saw wearing thick makeup, making them scream, while he yelled, "Run, Aunt Cass!"

She grabbed him as she obeyed, dragging him through the kitchen and all the way to her truck parked outside the back door.

"Get in!" she ordered.

Hiro didn't need to be told twice. The Fujitas were already following them, looking wet and furious. A spiked ball hit Hiro's open door as he crawled in, slamming it shut on him. Hiro yelped as it had barely missed him as he pulled himself inside the vehicle. He hit the automatic locks even as Aunt Cass fumbled with her keys and her phone simultaneously.

"Hello, police? Yes, I need to report an assault and kidnapping! These geisha are trying to kidnap my nephew, Hiro Hamada and... What? No, this is not a prank call!"

Then there were cries of pain as a pair of yellow disks came sailing out, forcing the Fujitas temporarily away from the pick-up truck.

"What are you waiting for? Go!" Gogo ordered even as she caught the disks on the ricochet.

"Wait, Gogo!" Aunt Cass called, forgetting she was still on the phone, resulting in her having to BS, "What type of name is Gogo? A superhero name." Then she rolled her eyes. "Yes, _that_ Hamada. And you better not give me special treatment just because of the name! If someone calls saying their kids are being chased and kidnapped by geisha, you should be more on the ball! Sheesh!"

A bat spiked with nails hit the passenger side of the windshield, making the safety glass crack like crazy. Although it held, Hiro knew it wouldn't withstand another hit like that. 

"On second thought, special treatment would be really nice right about now!" Aunt Cass squealed even as she finally got the truck into gear and floored it, although she ended up accidentally fumbling her phone in the process, ending the call. However, the short one with the spiked umbrella closed her umbrella long enough to break out the back window of the shell and rapidly opened the umbrella so it lodged inside the back, dragging her behind the truck as it suddenly lurched forward.

The one with fans grabbed the short girl's trailing hand and the short girl whipped her forward so the girl could grab the tailgate. Gogo, seeing this, cursed and broke away from the remaining four to follow the truck. She had to dodge the two plain vans on the way, although the remaining Fujitas grabbed on to the vehicles, cackling as they followed.

Gogo sent her disks out at the two Fujitas holding on to the back of the truck but the one holding the parasol ducked and the other pulled herself to the passenger side, keeping herself a bit safer as she worked her way up the side of the truck. Gogo cursed as the disks returned only to curse much louder, longer, and much more vociferously when a van tried sideswiping her at the same time a bat barely missed her head.

Meanwhile, back at the truck, Hiro was feeling more than a little frightened at how relentless his pursuit was being.

"Shit! We've got two on our rear!" he cried out as he looked back.

"Language," Aunt Cass corrected absently before demanding, "Why are they after you anyway?"

"Remember when Tadashi and I got arrested because I went bot fighting?"

"Yes," Aunt Cass agreed darkly.

"That was my last time, I promise!" Hiro quickly insisted before continuing, "But the guy I beat was apparently a crime lord who was slumming it and he didn't like me beating him. And when I showed up on the news here lately, he decided to send his people after me."

"Well, shit."

"Language," Hiro parroted back.

"Not the time," Aunt Cass stated, reaching over to give him a light smack in reprimand without ever tearing her eyes from the road, "Where's your tracker? Mine's in my phone. We need to get rid of them and get to the police."

"What? Why?" Hiro asked, "I mean, I get the police, but why are you worrying about Tadashi's trackers?"

Aunt Cass's voice broke a little as she admitted, "They have your brother."

"WHAT?!"

Hiro was interrupted before he could rant any further by Aunt Cass taking a sharp turn that ended up with Hiro pressed up against his door. He risked a look out his window to see if they'd lost the two clinging to the rear with that move, only to yelp when he saw the one with the fans had managed to inch her way up and was even now clinging to his door handle. She grinned at him and forced the edge of her metal fan into where the door met the body of the truck as if she was going to use it to pry the door open. Maybe she was.

Aunt Cass, in the meantime, was explaining as she drove, "They had his hat and his phone and they're tracking us with his tracking devices. That's how they knew you were home before I did. Where's your phone?"

"My tracker's not in my phone! I eliminated it as a possibility ages ago! I thought he'd put it in my hoodie, but apparently not!" Hiro replied even as he debated the merits of throwing his door open in hopes it would dislodge the fan girl versus what would happen if it failed to work.

"Call the cops back," Hiro suggested even as he started searching the glove compartment for something hard to throw. "Maybe they can meet us somewhere or something and arrest these people. Ugh! Don't you have anything other than paper in here? You know, something to use as a weapon?"

"No! Why would I? I don't drive around town expecting to get into a car chase!"

They both shrieked when Hiro's door popped open, the girl with the fans having successfully forced her way in. She latched on to Hiro and only his seat belt prevented her from dragging him out of the truck. Hiro cried out and tried pushing the Fujita away even as Aunt Cass yelled, "Get away from him!" 

Aunt Cass reached over and pulled on the woman's hair, the truck weaving as she did. The girl screeched at the combined assault and let go.

"Aunt Cass!"

"Yie!" Aunt Cass let out an ear-piercing cry as she rapidly turned the wheel and hit the brakes before they hit the second van that had suddenly loomed out in front of them. The rear of the truck came to a rest against a signpost and came to a complete stop, leaving them shaken and facing the direction they'd just came from. 

"Crazy woman driver," the Fujita who'd managed to cling to her parasol the entire time muttered as she finally let it go and fell shakily onto her rear, looking a little green under her makeup.

Gogo came to a protective halt in front of them even as the two vans blocked the truck from leaving. The Fujitas clinging to the vans let go and spread out in case they tried running again, quickly joined by the still shaky one with the spiked parasol and the fan girl, who limped up with a scowl.

Hiro gulped as he undid his seatbelt and got ready to run. This looked bad. 

The one in the green was the last to join the spread, having paused to give some commands to the driver of the van she had been holding on to. She took front and center when she joined the others and said, "I suggest you quit running, Hiro. We're always gonna find you, but if we get bored, we might just have to take it out on pretty boy here."

She looked over her shoulder with a smirk as she said the last to where two men where dragging a third out of the back of the van. Hiro was aware of Gogo stiffening and absently wondered if she'd known Tadashi was in trouble or was just now learning about it. As it was, Hiro couldn't tear his eyes from his brother, who was bound and gagged and had a gun pressed to his head. 

~*~*~*~*~*~

"Get out of the truck. Both of you."

Tadashi tried shaking his head but the bigger of the two guys grabbed his hair and yanked Tadashi's head back, making him audibly wince past the gag. Hiro and Aunt Cass slid out of the truck.

"Let him go," Gogo growled even as she frantically tried to figure a way out of this situation. She couldn't think of one that didn't involve backup, the rest of the team was in Los Edos, and where were the police when you needed them? It didn't help that it had all clicked - the speed they'd caught up, the way they'd kept cutting them off, how they always seemed to know where to find them - the moment she'd seen Tadashi. They had his tracking device and Gogo cursed herself for a fool for not realizing that, much less that her friend was in danger, much earlier.

"Come here, Hiro," the redhead Fujita cooed. The boy shook his head, standing his ground even as Gogo shifted to put herself more in front of the kid.

"Move it. Or we'll kill him," the tallest Fujita in the bunch ordered even as the brute holding the gun pressed it harder against Tadashi's temple, likely leaving a bruise.

"Alright, just don't hurt him!" Hiro stupidly agreed. Gogo grabbed his arm, stopping him from actually getting closer to the group.

"Over my dead body," Gogo challenged.

"That can be arranged," the lead Fujita replied coldly before ordering, "Shoot the women."

" _What_?" Cass squeaked right before Gogo pushed her down, the bullet whizzing over their heads. She quickly dragged the woman behind the truck.

" _Aunt Ca- mph_!"

"Hiro!" Gogo and Cass called out, Gogo pushing her head up long enough to see one of the men with the Fujitas pressing a cloth to the boy's face even as he dragged him back to the closest van before a second shot made her duck back down. Two more shots, one of which clipped her shoulder armor, made Gogo scramble for better cover even as she continued to try and protect Cass. Then the vans were pulling out with a squeal of their tires.

Gogo cursed and moved to follow. Only one was in sight, already taking a left, and she followed. The passenger shot at her a few more times but missed and Gogo's disk knocked the gun from his hand before he could reload. Then she aimed for the back tires with her disks. They both hit and the tires popped, sending the speeding van careening onto the sidewalk until it was stopped by an old fire hydrant and a wall. Gogo ripped open the back, disks at the ready, only to find out the van was empty except for the two men in the front who were starting to stir. 

"No. No, no, damnit, no!" she cursed as she looked around. There was no sign of the second van. She'd lost them. She skated around to the only door that could be reached and grabbed the barely conscious man by his shirt through the window.

"Where are they?" she demanded to know, shaking the man.

"I don't know! We were just supposed to be a decoy!"

"DON"T LIE TO ME!"

"Yama! Yama has them! At his place!"

Gogo let the man go and skated off as fast as she could. She'd never been there, but everyone who'd ever worked on the rougher edges of town knew that there was a fancy place surrounded by slums that housed the crime lord and his operations. Gogo needed to find it and she needed to find it fast. She had a pair of brothers to save.


	5. Deals

**Notes for the Chapter:**

>  **Warnings:** This is the chapter that requires pretty much most of the warnings. There is, as there has been, continued threat of violence but there's also now threat of rape, coercion, sexual harassment and minor sexual assault (ie. nothing below the belt or even really beneath the collarbone), heavily implied human trafficking up to and including slavery and prostitution... I'm implying Yama and his people getting up to some nasty stuff, folks. So if you've got triggers, please tread with care.

Chapter 5 - Deals

_"Did you find them? Please tell me you found them!"_ the shrill voice over the phone demanded. 

Gogo winced and quickly stated, "No, I lost them. But I have a lead. Call the police if you haven't already. I'll call you back if it pans out." Then Gogo quickly and somewhat guiltily ended the call so she wouldn't have to hear Cass break down at her news, pocketing her phone as she skated through the city. Gogo didn't know exactly where Yama's place was but she'd done enough courier work throughout the area to have a pretty good idea of where it might be. 

There was an area known as the Tenderloin for various apocryphal reasons, including that the cops who worked there made enough on bribes to be able to afford the expensive cut of meat. It was a rough area and definitely one avoided by all but the stupidest of tourists, but it edged on some of the nicer areas, including Nobi Hill. Gogo snorted at the thought of that name. The name was obviously a Japanese-influenced version of Nob, but Nobi in Korean referred to the lowest class, so Gogo had always gotten a kick out of the fact that it was a very upscale area. Still, there'd been a failed attempt to gentrify the Tenderloin near where it edged Nobi Hill and if there was any place a crime lord would hide a mansion, it would be there.

Because searching street by street would be exhausting, not to mention potentially dangerous in the Tenderloin area, Gogo searched for a building of good height with an outdoor fire escape and climbed, taking off the wheels at her feet so they wouldn't get in the way as she did, although she put them back on once she was on the roof. Then she scanned the area, wishing her helmet had something like Baymax's scanners in it. She'd have to nag Tadashi and Hiro about that and/or tracking devices that only the team could use when - definitely _when_ \- she got them back safe and sound.

The neon lights were well and truly on as it was growing late although not as late is it felt it should be to her. Neither of the chases she'd recently been involved in had been that long and the late buses, trains, and trams were still going about their business, as were any late night businesses like the ones that crowded the Tenderloin, the closest ones advertising pachinko parlors, adult video stores, and a twenty-four hour fast food place called Tako Taco. Away from the worst of the noise and lights, however, was a building. It was a large, fancy, Japanese style house set up slightly higher than the surrounding slums and all of its lights were on. Gogo's eyes narrowed. If Yama had the brothers anywhere, she'd bet they were there.

~*~*~*~*~*~

There was cotton in his head and rubber in his mouth and Hiro groaned because the ball gag was making his jaw hurt. He blinked open eyes that felt gummed shut, only to wince because wow, that was a bright light. He forced his eyes back open, though, because Tadashi had been with him and Hiro had to know if his big brother was alright.

It was a surprisingly nice room with plush carpet and huge TV taking up the wall Hiro was facing. A wall of Shoji-style screens done in translucent glass and dark wood was to his right and a bunch of windows overlooking a fancy, traditional-style garden were to his left. Hiro himself was bound tightly to a sturdy chair that was too heavy to really move across the thick carpet, although he gave it a spirited try.

"Ah, you're awake. Good," someone said from behind him. Hiro tensed and turned his head as far as he could. The man who walked into his field of vision was very familiar and Hiro felt a sinking sensation as he recognized the large man who'd sicced several other men after Hiro at what had become his last bot fight. The huge man - Big Yama if Hiro remembered correctly and he was pretty certain he did - was dressed in a surprisingly well-tailored men's kimono in black and silver, complete with white toe socks that stood out against the fancy tatami mats on the floor.

"Hiro Hamada," Yama stated as he circled the chair, "Fourteen years old. Graduated high school at thirteen and is currently attending the San Fransokyo Institute of Technology. Lives above the Lucky Cat Café with his aunt Cass Rudolph and older brother Tadashi Hamada."

Then Yama leaned into Hiro's face and added, "And you're the punk who thought he could take me for a ride at bot fighting."

Yama then leaned back and continued circling Hiro.

"Not that you've gone to a bot fight since then. I've had people looking for you just in case, but it seems you cleaned up to get into that university of yours. Even gave some of your tech to the Big Heroes everyone is talking about."

To Hiro's surprise, Yama undid the gag, which Hiro eagerly spat out.

"What do you want?" Hiro demanded.

"The way I see it, you owe me. You cheated me in that fight and when the cops got a hold of the money you won, it tipped them off to the fact I use bot fighting to launder money."

Hiro jerked. Some of the money he'd won had been fake?

"So," Yama continued, "I want what's in that head of yours. Plans for your fighting bot, schematics for those 'microbots', maybe even a few new ideas."

"What makes you think I'd help you?" Hiro asked, incredulous. Yama smirked as he pulled a remote out of the folds of his kimono and turned on the TV.

"Tadashi," Hiro breathed for that's what the TV showed. Tadashi was in a very different room, this one draped in what looked like velvet. Tadashi had been placed on and bound to what looked like a fancy, upholstered lounge chair that was designed with a curved base that put the sitter's knees higher than their butt. 

Then Hiro realized that they'd changed Tadashi's clothes. His shoes and socks were missing and his jeans and T-shirt had been replaced by pressed khaki slacks and a wine red button-down shirt. A quick glance down at himself showed Hiro was still dressed in the clothes he'd been wearing earlier, so why had they changed Tadashi's?

"I own a host club where there's no questions asked and your brother, well, he's a good-looking man. You'd be surprised how much you can make per hour off of a good-looking man. And there's a lot of people who get a kick out of gags and ropes," Yama stated almost casually. Wait. Was he really suggesting...? He was.

"You wouldn't dare," Hiro growled. Yama pulled out a cell phone, swiped a finger across the screen, and pressed a button.

"Botan. You're up."

An evil giggle replied before the phone cut off. Yama then entered something into his phone and held it, thumb hovering over the send button.

"You agree to work for me and I'll stop Botan," Yama informed him.

"Who or what is Botan?" Hiro demanded with a frown. Yama just gestured at the TV. Hiro watched in dismay at what happened next.

~*~*~*~*~*~

Tadashi had been alarmed to wake up in different clothes, not to mention gagged and bound to some sort of lounge chair. His hands had been bound behind the chair and his legs were bound to the lounge chair at ankle and knee. Despite his struggling, the only things he seemed able to move were his head and hips. The last was ill-comfort as the room he was in looked like something from some sort of fancy bordello.

In addition to all of the draped velvet, there were what had to be replicas of old, pornographic scrolls hanging on the wall he was facing under a rather fancy camera set on a track so it could look at any angle of the room. The whole situation struck him as the set-up for a porn movie, which made his pulse race and his palms sweat. God, if they were doing this to him, what were they doing to Hiro? He highly doubted their kidnappers would have any qualms about things like underaged.

A click of a door closing made Tadashi freeze before looking warily at who'd entered the room. It was one of the roller geisha - the one with red hair - although she was currently sans skates, stockings, armor, or any visible weapons, leaving just a dangerously revealing costume.

"Hey, pretty boy," she purred even as she leaned down to show off her cleavage. Tadashi looked away.

"Aw, don't be like that," she cooed, reaching out to remove his gag.

"Whatever it is you're here for, I want no part in it," he coldly informed her once his mouth was freed.

"Aw, you don't want to play with me?" she asked, running her fingers along his jaw. 

Tadashi did his best to shake her off, hissing, "Don't touch me!"

"Ah, ah, ah! Be good, gorgeous, or I'll have to cut you," she said as she pulled a knife from her obi and placed it where his jaw and neck met by his ear, right next to the carotid artery. Tadashi froze as she leaned in because moving away would have meant cutting himself open on her knife. She stole a kiss and bit his lip even as he gave a full-body shudder in disgust. The sound of the camera moving and refocusing made him grimace as he realized they were being actively filmed. It didn't take a lot of imagination as to why, either.

"Tell you what, pretty boy," the woman said as she trailed the tip of her knife down his throat to the button holding the collar of his shirt closed and cutting it off, "if you play with me-" Another button went and she moved her fingers into the gap to open the shirt, lightly stroking his now exposed collarbone. "-I'll make sure no one touches your little baby brother like this."

Tadashi let out a breath that sounded an awful lot like a sob to his ears. Oh god, Hiro! Tadashi didn't want this, didn't like what it boded for what his kidnappers had planned for his future, but he couldn't let them do this to Hiro. She cut off another button even as Tadashi closed his eyes in resignation and whispered, "Alright."

The geisha made a gleeful noise, only to be cut off by what sounded like a buzzer. He cast her a confused look only to see her scowling at her obi as she fished out a cell phone. She cursed at whatever text she'd received before favoring him with a grin. Then she grabbed his chin and slowly licked his cheek before whispering in his ear, "Looks like we'll have to finish this later, gorgeous."

Then she let Tadashi go and bounced to the door, leaving him alone in the room once more. All Tadashi could do was feel relieved she'd gone and worry when she'd be back.

~*~*~*~*~*~

The look of resignation on his big brother's face as he agreed to be... to be _raped_ just for Hiro's sake broke Hiro and he yelled out, "Alright, okay! I'll do it! Just leave Tadashi alone!"

Yama pressed the button on his phone, sending the text he'd promised would stop Botan and stop she did. And if Hiro had thought Tadashi's look of acceptance had been bad enough, the relief on his face when Botan flounced out of the room had just about killed Hiro

"I knew you'd see things my way," Yama stated before clapping his hands and shouting, "Boys!" Three rough-looking men entered the room.

"Get him ready to move to the drafting room," Yama ordered.

"Right, boss." The men, keeping a firm grip on Hiro at all times, untied him from the chair, handcuffed his hands in front of him, and led him from the room, following Yama to a room a few doors down on the other side of the hall.

"Start with your battle-bot schematics. I have the feeling it's the clue to truly understanding those microbots," Yama instructed as Hiro was shoved onto a stool in front of a drafting table. Both table and stool were bolted to the floor. Even with his hands cuffed, however, Hiro would be able to reach everything he needed to draw out a schematic on the computer built into the drafting table. Hiro scowled at it, but moved to start when, suddenly, all of his captors' phones went off, Yama's included.

"What?" Yama snapped into his phone.

"We're under attack!" a male voice shouted over the speaker phone, easily audible to everyone in the room. "It's one of the Big Heroes! The yellow one!"

"Gogo! Yes!" Hiro cheered before realizing that doing so in front of his captors was really kind of stupid. Yama grabbed Hiro by the arm and shoved Hiro back down onto the stool.

"You have a project to work on, remember? You. Stay here and keep an eye on the kid. The rest of you, with me. I'll take care of this personally."

Hiro grimaced and stuck out his tongue as Yama left the room, at least until the guard aimed a gun at him.

"Whoa! Wait! I'm pretty sure your boss won't be happy if you shoot me!"

"He also won't like it if you don't draw those schematics, so get to work! Besides, it's not as if you need to be able to walk to draw. Well? What're you waiting for? Move it!"

Hiro turned to the drafting program, silently cursing the guy even as he started sketching out the bare outlines of his battle bot. Gogo better hurry up.

~*~*~*~*~*~

She'd been right. Gogo probably would've crowed if she'd been inclined to make loud, Fred-like noises. As it was, she had a smirk firmly placed on her lips even as she focused on getting past all of the guards. Unfortunately, there were an awful lot of armed guards and she hadn't actually managed to make it past the courtyard. Considering the number of men with guns, she was very grateful Hiro had made her suit bullet-proof, even if she'd managed to avoid anything worse than what the Fujitas had caused earlier. Speaking of Fujitas...

Gogo dodged a spiked ball and then used her momentum to flip herself over the taut chain before it could clothesline her. Then she tossed one of her disks at the Fujita who'd attacked her, the tall one with dark blue hair and an eyepatch. The woman managed to duck it even as she reeled the spiked ball back in. She didn't manage to dodge the second one as it ricocheted and hit the woman in the back of the head, sending her sprawling. Gogo snorted and tried to make for the stairs, only to have to dodge the parasol of the Fujita in green. She was nasty with that thing, Gogo noted.

"Hold!" someone shouted. The gunfire stopped. "Damnit, Tsubaki, I said hold!"

The Fujita backed off, but moved so she was still blocking the stairs. Standing at the top of them was a large man who could only be Yama himself.

"What are you doing in my home, Big Hero?" the man called out.

"Hello, Yama. Did you really think we wouldn't keep an eye on the kid who made the tech White Knight uses?" Gogo called out. Yama narrowed his eyes but didn't respond, prompting Gogo to add, "That kid and his brother are under _my_ protection."

"Where's the rest of your team, Big Zero?" Tsubaki asked.

"I don't need them to take you down, but they're just a shout away if I do decide I need help," Gogo bluffed. She was out-manned and out-gunned and she knew it but she couldn't let them know the rest of the team was... unavailable. "Now bring them here or I'll rip this place apart."

Yama laughed. Even as he chuckled, he said, "You're lying. My people talked about you being involved earlier and if you'd had back-up, they would be here by now. For some reason, the rest of the Big Heroes aren't available, are they? You're all alone. Go home."

"No, I'm not leaving. Not without the Hamada brothers," Gogo replied even as she weighed her options. She decided to go with the truth. "And you're right. The others have stuff they need to do to keep up appearances but the moment they don't... It won't stop with just me. You'll have all of us after you and we'll tear apart everything you own, everything you're a part of starting with this place, until we find who we're looking for.

"You have a choice, Yama. Right now it's just me ripping through your people but soon it won't be just me and do you really want to make the Big Heroes your enemies? But if you let the Hamadas go right now, this will end and you won't have to worry about us."

"Maybe not right now, but in the future? I'm not stupid, Gogo. That is your name, right? It's what the younger Hamada calls you."

Gogo blinked but that was hidden by her suit and she refused to react in any other way. It wasn't like it was her legal name. Heck, only the rest of the team even called her that, so it was probably the safest name for her superhero identity that didn't involve the news just making one up for her. At least it wasn't that bad of a name. Fred would probably be disappointed she wasn't officially the Blur or something like that, but oh well.

"Gogo? More like a tamago. We'll splatter you like an egg, little girl. Or a tomato. A tomago," Tsubaki sneered. Gogo flipped her off even as she continued to glare at Yama.

"You going to bring them out or do I need to start tearing this place apart again?" Gogo asked firmly.

"Now, now, there's no need for that. I'm sure we can make a deal. What do you know about a Fujita roller derby?"

"That they're supposedly deadly, the police has yet to find the location you hold them at, and you tape them for the Los Edos crowd," Gogo replied calmly, wondering what Yama was up to.

"They are indeed deadly and they're actually filmed for a casino I own over in Los Edos, but otherwise, you are correct. I'll make you a deal, Big Hero. You go unarmed against my flower garden on the deadliest track in San Fransokyo in front of a live audience. The first lap, we let you walk out, alive and no questions asked. The second lap, you get one of the Hamadas. Third lap, you get the other Hamada. Three laps to win."

"And you get to make a ton of money off of it by charging an entrance fee, not to mention any betting. No deal."

"Oh, well, if you don't think you're fast enough..." Tsubaki trailed off. Gogo froze. Oh, that was the wrong thing to say.

"What did you say?" she asked in a low, dangerous tone.

"I said, if you don't think you're fast enough-"

"Fine, I'll do it, but on my terms."

"You're not in a position to negotiate terms, sweetie," Tsubaki stated condescendingly.

"Oh, but I think you'll like these. Me in full gear against you and your weapons-"

"We would've done that anyway."

"-and it's filmed _live_ for your Los Edos casino. Think you can do that?"

Yama laughed and nodded.

"I think we can manage that."

Gogo nodded and while Yama whipped his people into a frenzy to start getting things ready, she surreptitiously texted Fred, Honey Lemon, Wasabi, and, after a moment's hesitation, Baymax with instructions to find Yama's casino. If she could get Hiro and Tadashi all in one place where they would be easy to grab... The hard part would be giving the police the location because there was no way Yama would let her see where the roller derby was going to be held. And right now? She'd need all the help she could get.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tako Taco is actually taken from one of the [pictures Scott Watanabe drew of San Fransokyo's seedy underside](http://scottwatanabe.tumblr.com/post/102974378390/yama-used-to-be-have-a-more-predominate-role-along), as is the rest of the description of the Tenderloin. Despite that, the Tenderloin is an actual place in San Francisco and one you don't want to wander into unless you absolutely know what you're doing. Nob Hill is also a place in San Francisco and it is located right next to the Tenderloin area. Nobi does refer to the lowest class in Korean, hence Gogo's dark amusement at the name.
> 
> I actually had Hiro and Tadashi's scenes written (but not edited) before I'd ever finished writing _A Few Seconds Difference_ and it was those plus the very idea of a Gogo vs Fujita roller derby that made me even consider writing this. Next chapter, the rest of the gang gets involved again!


	6. What Happens In Los Edos...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry about taking so long. Gogo's more than eager to get things over with (as are Tadashi and Hiro) but the rest of the team was kind of embarrassed and tried to pull a "what happens in Los Edos stays in Los Edos" on me, hence the chapter title. Well, except for Baymax, who is still at the TMI stage. Oh well, you get a pretty decent length of chapter at any rate.

Chapter 6 - What Happens In Los Edos...

They had eight decks in play at the blackjack table, Wasabi knew. Well, technically, only six as two decks worth of cards had already been gone through and two of the ones remaining only consisted of the three of hearts, ace of clubs, and ten of diamonds. He quickly calculated his odds and said, "Hit me." It paid off and he won the round.

"Are you staying in?" the dealer asked with a rather wary look at Wasabi. Wasabi gave him a rather sheepish smile. They'd already traded dealers at the table once and Wasabi suspected the only reason they hadn't kicked him out was because there was no proof he was cheating. Well, that and he did lose the occasional hand and was so conservative in his betting that, even after hours of playing, he'd only now doubled the money Hiro had given him.

Wasabi paused at that thought as he pushed his mental count of the cards to one side and pulled up the constant count of time he'd kept for as long as he could remember. He'd been playing blackjack for _hours_. The opening ceremony of the convention was long over and everything that followed would be well underway, if not close to finishing up by now, completely destroying the reason they'd left so early that morning. Where were Fred and Honey Lemon and why hadn't they come and grabbed him?

"No, I'm out," he told the dealer before collecting his winnings. Once he was away from the table with Hiro's money safely tucked into an inner pocket, Wasabi pulled out his phone and started texting his wayward friends.

"Where are you guys?" he muttered as he texted. The response he got from Honey Lemon involved far too many exclamation marks and a general description that suggested they were in the middle of all of the slot machines. As he moved towards them, Wasabi found himself having to force his way through a crowd, although he did so as politely as possible.

"Excuse me. Pardon me. Coming through. There you guys are! What are you doing?"

A crowd had gathered around his friends. Baymax was playing slots. Fred was apparently running back and forth between the winner's booth and the slots in order to change the heavy coins for lighter currency while Honey Lemon took frantic notes with a gleeful smile on her face.

"Experiment!" she exclaimed as she heard him, waving her notebook. Baymax pressed the button on the machine he was in front of and it lit up, only for there to be a sad song. The crowd moaned but then he pressed the button again and the machine lit up, announcing the robot was a winner.

"Yes!" Fred enthused as he fetched the winnings and went to go exchange it.

"Is this even legal? Or ethical?" Wasabi asked with a raised eyebrow. Honey Lemon paused, as if it was just now occurring to her that their actions would never have been approved by any university ethics board. Wasabi felt like sighing, because really? All it would take is one upset person to report them. Speaking of which...

"What's going on here?" an important-looking man in a suit asked, looking down his nose at them.

"Oh! Uh, an experiment?" Honey Lemon offered with a brittle smile even as she clutched her notebook behind her.

"I don't remember an experiment being authorized in the casino," the man stated with a glare. Fred, coming back up, paused and fumbled and tried to look innocent when the man turned the glare on him.

"This robot," the official asked, "has it been the one playing the machines?"

"I have," Baymax calmly agreed. The man blinked but didn't let up his firm gaze.

"And are you capable of manipulating these machines?" he asked Baymax directly.

"Winning makes my patients' happy, although I have noticed that they are happier if I win after losing a little," Baymax replied. Honey Lemon took in a sharp intake of breath while Fred and Wasabi winced and the gathered crowd gasped and murmured. 

"I'd say that's a big fat yes," the official stated with a scowl before turning on Honey Lemon and Fred and Wasabi as they'd joined her. "Which of you owns this robot?"

"My creator is not present. I was sent along with my patients to film the convention as he was unable to attend," Baymax quickly interjected, although his tone remained calm and soothing.

"So, misusing stolen tech?" the official asked with a sneer.

"I was not stolen," Baymax denied, his eyes narrowing.

"Did your owner order you to gamble?"

"My creator did not."

"Then it's still a misuse of technology," the official decided.

"I am sorry my presence is causing trouble. Is there any way to rectify the situation?" Baymax asked with a tilt of his head. Well, that was diplomatic, Wasabi thought, but then again, Baymax had been coded by Tadashi so maybe it wasn't that surprising. A half-hour later found them gathered at Wasabi's vehicle as he carefully packed it back up.

"Man, I can't believe they kicked us out even after they took back all the money Baymax won. And I paid for that suite, too!" Fred complained as he leaned against the roof of Wasabi's van.

"At least they let us keep Baymax," Honey Lemon offered with a wan smile as she moved her phone slightly away from her face. "For a little while, I didn't think they would." Then whoever had her on hold was apparently back as she returned her focus to the device, talking rapidly to the person on the other end of the line.

Wasabi grunted as he closed the back of his van and said, "I really don't know what you guys were thinking. I thought everyone knew it was illegal to combine robots and gambling. We're lucky the guy just kicked us out instead of calling the cops."

Fred winced and admitted, "I know. I just kinda got caught up in the excitement, ya know?"

"Well, that excitement caused us to miss the first day of the convention and we're not going to be able to hide the lack of video from the others. Hiro's probably the only one who won't be furious and that'll be because I managed to double the money he gave me."

"Really? Right on!" Fred enthused, only to droop when Wasabi gave him a look. Honey Lemon then ended her call with a sigh.

"That was the last hotel close to the convention center and like all the others, it's been booked for _months_. We're going to have to look farther afield to find a place to stay."

"Dang. It's one thing after another, isn't it?" Fred asked with a pout before brightening. "I know! We can sleep in Wasabi's car!"

"Oh, no you don't!" Wasabi protested even as Baymax added, "I would not recommend that course of action. Not only are the seats not designed for optimal sleep positions, but the nights get very cold in the desert. You would run the risk of hypothermia if you sleep outside without the heater and risk carbon monoxide poisoning with the heater."

There was a pause before Wasabi muttered, "That would be a kinder death than the one the others will give us."

"Wasabi," Honey Lemon began.

"What? We're literally the walking dead right now!"

"You're vital functions are currently within the parameters of living human beings," Baymax stated with a confused edge to his calm tone.

"It's an expression, Baymax. He means that we're in trouble," Honey Lemon gently explained.

"A lot of trouble because not only will Gogo be after us for missing the convention, but if you end up with a gambling addiction, Tadashi will _kill us_ ," he added, shivering.

Wasabi liked Tadashi. Tadashi was a great guy; smart, friendly, easy-going, and a natural peace-maker if he'd ever seen one. It had been nearly unanimous to make him the lab mom aka student supervisor, even if Wasabi suspected some of the votes had been so he'd spend some time squirreled away in the private lab and not constantly out on the floor nagging people about safety procedures. But one thing everyone in the lab knew was that you didn't make Tadashi angry. Part of it was the obvious fact that if you'd managed to anger such an easy-going guy then there was something going on but the rest... 

Tadashi didn't do quick, obvious bursts of temper. Oh, sure, if he was irritated he'd flail about while ranting but, when he was actually angry, Tadashi went cold, quiet, and contemplative, as if he were silently considering every possible way to kill you right where you stood. And then he'd smile, as if he'd just figured out the best way to murder you and hide your body where it would never be found. In fact, there were rumors amongst the lower years that he'd done exactly that to the last person to anger him. It wasn't true, of course. The guy was actually still very much alive and flipping burgers for a living and likely would be for the foreseeable future because Tadashi was vicious and vindicative when he felt he needed to be. 

The guy in question hadn't taken it well that Tadashi, as student supervisor, was technically in charge despite being younger than, well, pretty much everyone else in the lab at the time. He refused to follow safety procedures and when Tadashi tried taking him to task, the guy had not only implied Tadashi had gotten his position by having sex with almost everyone in the lab, but that if Hiro - who Tadashi constantly talked about - was doing so well in school then it was because Hiro had taken a page out of Tadashi's book and was sleeping with all of his teachers. Tadashi had gone still and silent for a very long moment before suddenly smiling that terrifying smile and leaving the lab. The next day, the guy had gotten kicked out of SFIT because not only had Tadashi kept incredibly detailed reports of every single safety violation the guy had, but Tadashi had also managed to prove that pretty much every essay the guy had turned in was plagiarized. The guy had then tried to get back into college with another plagiarized essay and, well, that obviously hadn't gone anywhere. Wasabi suspected Tadashi had made sure it wouldn't. 

"Oh, he won't kill us," Honey Lemon insisted. "He'll just... make us wish he had," she finished with a wince. There was a pause before Fred spoke.

"I hope I come back as a zombie. Then I could go gnaw on evil-doers. I could take out all of those evil super-geniuses and eat their brains."

Wasabi and Honey Lemon both gave Fred a look. 

"Oh, don't worry. You're good guys so your brains will be totally safe," he quickly assured them. Before they could say anything, or even decide if they wanted to, they all received a text and they all went scrambling for their phones.

"IMPORTANT: Find casino owned by Yama and get there ASAP. There will be live feed playing. You'll know it when you see it. Trace its location and send info to Cass. Don't call Hiro or Tadashi. Phones are... compromised?" Wasabi read out loud, ending on a confused note. "What does she mean, 'phones are compromised'?"

"And who's Yama?" Honey Lemon asked with a frown.

"Uh, guys? I've got a better one: where's Baymax?" Fred asked. Honey Lemon and Wasabi shot frantic looks around only to confirm what Fred had already noticed. Baymax was gone.

"Oh no! _Tadashi really is going to kill us!_ " Honey Lemon exclaimed.

"Come on. We need to find him, quick!"

~*~*~*~*~*~

Baymax was many things but first and foremost was that he was a robot and he tended to be very literal. So, with his both his current primary - taking care of his patients - and secondary - film the convention - objectives not currently being applicable, he instantly obeyed the orders in the text Gogo sent, having recognized her as one of his 'patients'. First step? Find out which casino was owned by Yama.

It was easy enough for Baymax to wander around until he located an open wifi connection for him to take advantage of, far easier than breaking into the code on the slot machines, although the internet was considerably more vast. Still, the internet had some organization and software dedicated to navigating it, so it was more than doable to locate the ownership records for every single casino in Los Edos. More difficult was finding who owned the corporations who owned the casinos, although Baymax narrowed his search by focusing only on those businesses that own only three or fewer casinos. 

Idly, Baymax wondered if Tadashi had considered the ramifications of giving him the ability to hack as the only moral programming against it was the bit about doing no harm and he filed away the question to ask later. Such questions tended to end up with Tadashi making the most interesting gestures and expressions followed by an update to his code that made him a better healthcare provider. Being an excellent healthcare provider was connected to his reward system so, in a way, he supposed he found it pleasurable to make Tadashi react in such a way.

He then stopped that particular thought process with the intention of returning to it at a later date because he had found the casino he was looking for, including an address. Inputting the address into an online map quickly gave him directions for the shortest path on foot and he went on his way.

~*~*~*~*~*~

"How hard can it be to find a giant white robot?" Wasabi wondered from his position behind the wheel of his van.

"Wait! There he is!" Honey Lemon gestured wildly at an alley they just passed. Then they were in pursuit once more. It wasn't easy. Baymax was taking shortcuts that made it hard to just follow him as they had to find drivable routes. It reminded Wasabi far too much of following Baymax and Hiro to the docks where they first encountered Yokai. When they finally caught up to Baymax, it was at the parking lot of a rather seedy casino on the edge of town.

"Baymax, what are you doing?" Honey Lemon asked as she ran up to the robot, having slid out of the van before Wasabi had even parked it, despite his protests at the danger of her action.

"This is the casino Gogo requested we locate in her text," Baymax replied with a tilt of his head. "Shall we go in?" Fred, Honey Lemon, and Wasabi exchanged looks.

"Well, since we're here," Honey Lemon suggested.

"Right," Fred agreed before poking Baymax in the abdomen, "But after we disguise this guy."

"Disguise? Really?" Wasabi asked with a frown. 

"Yeah. No reason to get in trouble for bringing in a robot if we don't have to," Fred replied before asking Baymax, "You can hack the feed like she asked, right? I mean, you were doing something to the slot machines earlier, right, so this should be a piece of cake."

"If you find the feed, I should be able to track it's origin," Baymax replied.

"Now if only we knew why she wants us to do so," Wasabi muttered.

"She seemed to think it was important," Honey Lemon offered with a slight shrug.

"Yeah. Hey! What're you doing?!"

"Dude, you have a trench coat and a fedora back here!" Fred's muffled exclamation came from the rear of the van before he emerged with said items and a big grin. The grin flickered as he asked, "Why do you have these?"

"My little sisters like to put on mystery dinners. You know, the type with role play involved. And they like to spring them on me at last minute and pout if I don't show up, so they're there just in case, okay?" Wasabi said as he tried to snatch them back. Fred danced back.

"Nah, dude! These are perfect! Hey, do you think your pants would fit him?"

So, not ten minutes later, the three friends found themselves approaching the door to the casino with a Baymax disguised in Wasabi's clothes in tow, fedora pulled down low on his head and collar of the trench coat turned up. They paused for a moment and huddled together when they noticed the bouncer guarding the door, however.

"Okay, follow my lead on this one. We're going to pretend to be a bunch of rich college kids slumming it with our bodyguard, okay?" Fred stated with a nod of his head at Baymax. "But it looks like we're going to need to flash some cash. Hey, Wasabi, you still have that money you got from Hiro, right?"

"Yeah? Oh, right," Wasabi said as he followed Fred's train of thought, and wasn't that a scary thing? Still, he pulled out the wad of cash he'd tucked inside an inner pocket, making Fred whistle and Honey Lemon's eyes widen.

"You said you only doubled it? How much did the little dude give you?"

"A lot," Wasabi muttered as he recalled the roll of cash Hiro had pressed upon him early that morning.

"Well, that'll make this a lot easier to pull off!" Fred stated with a grin as he grabbed the money and led the way to the bouncer with an easy slouch and a bored look. Wasabi and Honey Lemon tried to copy him with varying degrees of success while Baymax just silently followed. To his friends' surprise, Fred bypassed the line and walked straight up to the bouncer even as he pulled a bit of cash off of the roll and waved it.

"Hey. Some of this is yours if you let me and my friends in," Fred stated with a gesture of his head at Wasabi, Honey Lemon, and Baymax. Wasabi shifted while Honey Lemon began to smile before remembering she was supposed to be a cool, bored rich kid and tried to look aloof. It didn't quite work. The bouncer raised his eyebrow at them but Fred waved the money again and he nodded. He let them inside in exchange for the money in Fred's hand without even a second look.

"Well, we're in. Now what?" Wasabi asked in a hushed tone as he took in the place. It was part bar, part club, all casino and seedy-looking to boot. He did _not_ want to know what was staining the carpet he was standing on.

"Gogo's text mentions a live feed and that we'll know which it is when we see it, so the TVs?" Honey Lemon asked quietly as she glanced at the text in question. Wasabi frowned at all of the TVs in the place. There were quite a few placed in strategic places for maximum viewing potential and each one seemed to have a bookie stationed by it for those interested in betting on what was being shown.

"Uh, guys? I think I found it," Fred stated in a surprisingly restrained tone as he gestured towards a bar with a TV placed prominently at the bar's end. Wasabi was about to ask why when a flash of yellow on the screen was suddenly zoomed in on and he recognized Gogo in her supersuit. 

"What the hell is she doing?!" Wasabi hissed.

"I don't know, but I think we'd better find out," Fred stated with uncharacteristically serious expression. "Follow me."

Wasabi and Honey Lemon exchanged looks but broke off when Baymax pushed past them, forcing them to scramble to keep up. Fred managed to snag an empty stool at the bar and save the one next to him for Honey Lemon while Wasabi and Baymax were forced to stand behind them at the crowded bar. Fred flashed the cash he was still carrying as he ordered drinks for him, Honey Lemon, and Wasabi before casually asking, "That looks interesting. What is it?"

"Fujita roller derby. This one's a special, last-minute, one night only deal. One of San Fransokyo's Big Heroes versus a five-woman team of Fujitas. Odds are a hundred to one that the Big Hero won't win the grand prize."

"What's the grand prize?" Honey Lemon asked with a slight frown.

"They're actually about to announce that. Here. Let me turn it up for you."

"Thank you," Honey Lemon murmured even as the man fetched a remote and turned up the TV.

"Hello, Los Edos! Have we got a show tonight! We've got a Fujita roller derby, just for you! And not just any Fujita roller derby, oh no! Tonight, we've got a single Big Hero taking on a whole team of armed Fujitas! Say hello to Gogo Tomago!" the woman announced, saying Gogo's name with a sneer. 

The camera panned to Gogo, who was obviously glaring at the woman before shaking it off and focusing on the track, which looked like something out of a video game. There were pits and flame throwers and what looked like a repurposed... well, Wasabi wasn't certain what it originally had been used for but it was stamping down against the track at timed intervals right where the walls of the track narrowed in, making it impossible to avoid. Fred, he noticed, was looking rather grim as he studied the track the cameras were panning over even as the announcer described what the contestants would be going up against.

"No extra lives in this game," he noted quietly when he noticed Honey Lemon giving him a concerned look.

"That's right," the guy in the next seat over stated, watching the TV with a grin. "The track's dangerous enough that normally not even the Fujitas go in armed. People regularly die in these things. The fact they're changing things up means they must think this Gogo Tomago is really something."

"Why even do it?" Honey Lemon asked. The man shrugged.

"To prove they're the best? I dunno. They say the Fujitas are the best of the best, though. You only get in if you can get around the track once, and even that's practically suicide unless you're really as good as you claim to be. Honestly, I think the Fujitas are all a little crazy, but there's no denying that they're really good at what they do. Besides, hot, dangerous women are always fun to watch."

"Of course," the announcer continued, "all of our dedicated viewers already know how dangerous our track is and that normal procedure is five minutes to make one lap. Oh, and pushing and shoving is allowed. But we're changing things up a little. Not only are our Fujitas going in fully armed, as is the Big Hero, but Tomago here has to lap all five Fujitas _three_ times. We're going to be nice, though, and give her a prize for every lap she successfully completes. First time around, she gets to leave alive and secret identity intact. For the second and third laps, she'll get very special prizes that seem to be arriving right now," the woman announced with an evil smile.

"Hey! What's the big deal? Ow!" a familiar voice cried out even as the camera focused on the speaker.

"Dios mio," Honey Lemon whimpered before her lips fluttered in a silent prayer. Wasabi's fingers curled into a fist and he felt vaguely sorry for Baymax, having noticed how, even under his trench coat, the robot had stiffened when Hiro had said, "Ow!" on the TV. Fred's fingers gripped the bar hard as they watched them handcuff Hiro's hands so high above his head that his feet were barely touching the floor. The pole he was bound to was on one end of the track and slightly above, a mocking sight to anyone on the ground and reachable only via a catwalk set slightly below the catwalks ringing the track. Hiro struggled before suddenly shouting, "Tadashi!" The cameras flipped to a different view to see, on the other end of the track, Tadashi being dragged over a catwalk to a second pole opposite the first.

"Hiro!" the older Hamada shouted, trying unsuccessfully to lunge out of the grip of the men holding him as they moved to chain him to the pole.

"Oh shit," Wasabi softly cursed before muttering, "We left them alone for one day! _One!_ Not even that! It hasn't even been twenty-four hours since we last saw them! How the hell did they get into this kind of trouble so fast?!" 

"Like we're ones to talk," Honey Lemon hissed at him. Wasabi paused but frowned because while, yes, they had gotten in trouble it hadn't been exactly been the same level of trouble as they were now witnessing. If those three got out of this alive, he was going to kill them! Then the TV briefly fritzed, making Wasabi and his friends blink and everyone else groan before Baymax removed his hand from the device and quickly moved to rejoin them, the TV working again as he moved away.

"Baymax, what did you do?" Honey Lemon asked in a whisper once he was back.

"I was retrieving the ISP address of the feed. I should have its location shortly. Would one of you like to call Aunt Cass with the requested information?" Baymax calmly replied.

"Do it," Fred stated with a fierce look, "The sooner the better, because I think it's gonna take the police longer than five minutes to get there."

Behind him, a starting buzzer sounded on the TV and a five minute timer started to count down.

~*~*~*~*~*~

Cass fumbled with her cell phone when it suddenly rang and the group of police officers all around her all suddenly perked up. They were all trying to help, she knew, but she felt a bit bitter they hadn't been around earlier to prevent anything and even now weren't able to do much because they didn't know where exactly her boys were and didn't dare rush in without that knowledge less the kidnappers kill their hostages.

"Hello?" she asked, not having looked at the caller id in her frantic surge to answer.

"Moshi moshi," the familiar voice on the other end stated at the same time as Cass gave her greeting.

"Honey Lemon?" Cass stated with a slight frown before the idea of having to explain the situation to her boys' friends hit her like a tidal wave. "I... Hiro and Tadashi... They took them!"

"We know," Honey Lemon stated, "Gogo got in contact with us. And we've got the location they're being held at. Can you get it to the police?"

Cass looked around at the police surrounding her, staring at her, and said wryly, "Yeah, I think I can manage that." Then she went scrambling for a piece of paper and a pen in order to write down the address Honey Lemon rattled off before hanging up with the promise to talk to her more later.

"Ms. Rudolph? Who's Honey Lemon?"

"That was... she's one of the Big Heroes. The others know but they're out of town. They found out where my boys are at, though! Well, what are you waiting for? Let's go get them!"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's only a brief scene in the movie, but Tadashi obviously made Baymax capable of hacking if Baymax is able to immediately download such a comprehensive amount of information about mental health and grief in such an impressively short amount of time. I'm just kind of tweaking and extending that ability a bit. The only real question is what sort of anti-virus program does Baymax have?
> 
> As for the trouble the guys get into in Los Edos... casinos tend to be pretty strict with what you can get away with in the environs and using a machine to win? Technically cheating. None of the team present in Los Edos actually owning Baymax is another strike against them (although you'll note Baymax responded to questions about ownership by referring to his _creator_ , not his owner), as is the fact that public experiments require the permission of the location (which the casino didn't give) as well as a proposal that passed an ethics board if it involves people in any way, shape, or form. What Fred and Honey Lemon did? Technically not ethical, if not outright illegal and getting kicked out while still keeping Baymax is getting lucky. 
> 
> Wasabi's card counting, on the other hand, is legal since he's doing it all in his head, but casinos don't like card counters. While the casino probably suspected him and started in on countermeasures after awhile (playing multiple packs and switching out to a faster dealer in an effort to confuse him), he also doesn't have a lot of the tells a normal card counter would have, as he betted conservatively, didn't table hop, and didn't play multiple hands.
> 
> Next chapter will be the nastiest roller derby ever!


	7. Ready, Set, Gogo

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Time in this chapter's a bit wonky as I'm trying to get everyone to the same temporal point, namely watching/participating in the roller derby. Please bear with me. Oh, also warning for heavily implied drug and alcohol usage by some OCs.

"Any more bets?" the bookie by the TV called out.

"How about Yama doesn't keep any of them because the police show up?" Wasabi suggested. The man next to him snorted.

"Pretty long odds. The cops in San Fransokyo haven't found that place yet. But hey, I'll take that bet."

"Sure!" Fred enthused as he put down a hundred.

"Fred!" Honey Lemon hissed.

"What? It'll keep us from looking suspicious," Fred whispered back before grinning and ordering another round of drinks from the bartender. Honey Lemon sighed but accepted the drink. The bar _was_ getting crowded as more people came to watch the roller derby and they needed an excuse to keep their seats. As it was, people kept trying to shoulder their way past Wasabi, which had made him crowd up against his friends' backs.

Baymax, in the meantime, had been programmed not to push people unless absolutely necessary, which had resulted in him being pushed back by the growing crowd. This didn't bother the robot as he could still see and scan Honey Lemon, Fred, and Wasabi from his position as well as see the TV. What _was_ a concern was that he was due for a recharge. There was a reason his creator had sent his case along, after all, and it wasn't just so he'd fit better in the vehicle. He'd been running for quite some time now and even standby still consumed some power, if not as much as his current mode nor the hacking. 

Thus, Baymax turned to a random person standing next to him and said, "My programming requires me to inform you that my battery will need recharging soon." With that requirement satisfied, Baymax turned from the man, only to pause at the man's words.

"Whoa, man, that's... Whoa! I can help you with that, man!"

Baymax blinked and then followed the man because if there was a charging station available, he should take advantage. There wasn't a charging station.

"This is a hallucinogenic," Baymax pointed out as the man tried handing him a small plastic bag filled with said hallucinogenic.

"Yeah, man. It'll get you charged right back up on your trip," the man stated with a unfocused smile.

"Scan complete. You have some of this in your system. Recommended treatment includes a quiet place and support." Baymax wrapped the man in a hug and patted his head. "There, there. You will be all right."

The man leaned into the hug and said, "You're the best, man." He also let himself be led away to a quieter bar to sit with a glass of water, Baymax sitting next to him. Just in time, too.

The drunk on Baymax's other side raised an eyebrow as the robot started muttering, "Whee! I am Healthcare, your personal baymax!" Baymax's head hit the wooden top of the bar with another "Whee!" as he started to slowly power himself down.

"I think ya've had enuf, buddy," the drunk slurred before turning back to his own drink and downing it. The man on hallucinogenics giggled and laid his head on the bar as well. The bartender just sighed. It was going to be a long night.

~*~*~*~*~*~

Yama knew it was a dangerous game he was playing but he'd apparently been the one to start it by kidnapping the Hamada brothers or, rather, by arranging it at any rate. The Big Hero had a point, though. He should've realized they'd be keeping an eye on the kid who'd made some of their tech. Ah, well, fortune was smiling on him after all because, for whatever reason, he only had to deal with one of the Big Heroes. So he'd decided to take advantage of his luck and proposed the game. 

The risk the Big Hero would actually win not only her freedom but _both_ of the Hamada brothers was slim and he had the odds coming in from his casino in Los Edos to back him up on that. Yama had planned on recording the derby anyway but the Big Hero's insistence on it being live was no doubt her attempt to hold Yama to his word. Not that Yama planned on backing out. A person didn't get to where he was by being dishonorable. And it wasn't like the Big Heroes were exactly legal, either. Masked vigilantes, the lot of them and the only reason the city wasn't calling for their blood was because they came across as honorable and good for the city. But, if the Big Hero broke her word and on video no less... It would be priceless as blackmail. And if she kept her word, well, he'd managed to get one to play his game and Yama could probably get the others to do so as well as long as he kept his hands on the youngest Hamada.

"Sir?"

Yama turned towards the man he'd sent to get him some snacks to see him not only holding the snacks but also a piece of paper from the bookies in the other box. One of the downsides of keeping this place off the grid meant blocking cell phones, so they had to resort to paper to communicate with him. Yama took it and read it, and then grinned.

"Tell them, if the Big Hero loses, that it can be arranged," he told the man, shooing him off once he'd set down the snacks.

"Yes, sir."

Yama turned to watch the track and the event about to start with a smirk, looking at the Hamada the memo had been about. Who knew the kid had such a high price on his head? This night was proving to be quite... lucrative. Yama chuckled to himself and signaled Tsubaki to start the match.

~*~*~*~*~*~

Tadashi hadn't been sure what to think when several men burst into the room he was being held in, although he fervently prayed it wasn't for the same reason as that woman, Botan, had come in for earlier. He was thus both relieved and alarmed when they pulled out a cloth rag like the one they had used earlier in the van to knock him out when he'd tried fighting his way to Hiro.

Tadashi jerked awake in another van - or possibly the same one from earlier; it was hard to tell - surrounded by various male thugs and Botan, his head in her lap. He immediately jerked upright into a sort of modified seiza, which was the best he could manage since his wrists had been handcuffed to his ankles. Apparently someone remembered his attempts to kick them. A quick glance confirmed he was still in the shirt and slacks from earlier and they weren't any more rumpled than one would expect from being tossed into the back of a van, which was a relief.

Botan giggled and leered as she said, "You know? I bet you'd make a lovely _kinbaku-bi_ model. Dress you up in a _karada_ and nothing else or an _ebi_ if you needed to be punished for being a bad boy. Mm... I wonder if Yama will let me buy you after we take care of this Big Hero?"

Tadashi's eyes widened as he did his best to scoot away from the woman while the men surrounding them chuckled. At the same time, Tadashi's mind was racing. Big Hero? Did she mean Gogo? She was the only other one in town and Tadashi had seen her moving to protect Aunt Cass earlier. Had Gogo found them? Was that why they were moving him? He hoped she'd at least reached Hiro, but wasn't about to ask. Then the van stopped.

"We're here," one of the men stated unnecessarily before grabbing Tadashi and unhooking his wrists from his ankles and pulling him out of the back door the others were opening.

It was like being hit by a wave of sound. The back of the van was just inside a warehouse-turned-stadium that Tadashi wasn't sure how to even begin to describe. They literally dragged him up some metal stairs - the handcuffs on his ankles hobbling him enough that, while he could walk, running and taking stairs were a physical impossibility - one man on either side. They were taking him to some sort of pole positioned between the crowded catwalks above and what looked like a video game racetrack below.

"Tadashi!"

Tadashi's attention snapped to a matching pole on the other side of the building and he tried to lunge away from his captors as he shouted his brother's name. It didn't work and one of the men blocked his view of Hiro as they unclasped one hand and then re-cuffed him with his hands above his head. Once Tadashi could see Hiro again, he could see his brother had been similarly bound, but Hiro was so short that he seemed to be bouncing on his toes in order to give his wrists some leeway. Tadashi hoped Hiro hadn't been bound that way for long because that was a position all too likely to cause damage that even Baymax could only diagnose, not treat.

Then Botan was blocking his view.

"For good luck," she stated, forcing a kiss on him before he twisted his head away and glared at her. She laughed and waved as she walked away, only for it to turn into a scowl as Hiro - who was apparently _trying_ to get himself killed - hurled invective at her. She was soon down on the track, though, which made Tadashi take a better look, only to pause because that was Gogo in her supersuit on a starting line quite a bit behind all of the geisha. He then felt his stomach drop as the announcer geisha talked about racing and prizes, namely Gogo racing for him and Hiro. This wasn't a racetrack. This was a deathtrap. 

"I hope you know what the hell you're doing, Gogo," he muttered.

~*~*~*~*~*~

Gogo had half expected them to drive her into the bay when Yama's goons insisted she load up in the back of an unmarked van with a solid divider between her and the driver. It was impossible to see where they were going so she wouldn't have been surprised if they tried to kill her but, when the van came to the stop, it was just inside a huge warehouse that had obviously been used for this purpose before and she was quickly led to her starting position. 

A quick, hidden look at her phone revealed what she'd suspected earlier. If the police couldn't find this place - and they obviously couldn't or it would've been shut down long ago - it was because they had a way to block cell phones and GPS devices. Sure enough, the brief glance at her phone had shown a big, red, 'No Service' sign. With no clue where she was and no way for anyone to track her, she had to hope her friends had gotten her message earlier and stall for as long as she could.

A look around showed catwalks up above being filled by people, as were several stands. Two boxes hung over the track. One was for an announcer and various bookies working on old, land-line-style phones while sitting at nice, new computers. Yama was already taking a seat in the fancier one. After glaring at the announcer, Tsubaki, for adding that stupid taunt to her name, Gogo noted where they were putting Hiro and Tadashi. Chains, she noted with a frown, and they were on opposite ends of the track, which meant she couldn't just grab them and run. It was starting to look increasingly like her best chance was winning the derby. Then Gogo took in the track.

"The hell kind of roller derby track is this?" Gogo muttered to herself because damn, it looked like someone had decided to make a real life Dario Cart track, never mind the death toll. Gogo was positioned on a line by the stands - which were growing crowded as more people came in - and where the track sloped up to its highest point. Past the line where the Fujitas were starting to congregate, the track went down sharply into what at first look was a skateboard park except it looked like there were things in the walls. She was fairly certain she could make out flames near where they were tying up Hiro. 

Over by where they'd just finished tying up Tadashi, even the walls disappeared from sight, which made Gogo frown. Then she scowled as the red-haired Fujitas forcibly stole a kiss from Tadashi for 'good luck'. Gogo's hands twitched with the urge to throw a wrist disc at the Fujita but it was too far for her to throw, especially accurately. 

Two years ago, she and Honey Lemon had made it their job to chase off the girls who were a little too forward with Tadashi, partially because Tadashi had only been seventeen at the time and thus technically jail bait, but mostly because he'd admitted to them that he'd been somewhat traumatized when his one and only ex attempted to force him to be the Romeo to her Juliet, complete with attempted death scene. It had made them rather protective of their friend and they weren't the only ones.

"Hey! Keep your filthy mouth off my brother, you old hag!" Hiro shouted at the Fujita.

"Hiro, what are you doing?" Tadashi shouted back, obviously not impressed with his brother's attempt at defending his virtue.

"What? You're not defending her, are you? She's sexually harassing you!"

"You seem to be forgetting who has the weapons, little boy," the red-headed geisha hissed.

"Yeah, yeah, because you obviously need to threaten someone to just to get some, Ugly!" Hiro taunted, making the red-head screech in anger.

"Hiro!" Tadashi shouted again, this time in a very dismayed tone while Gogo felt her eyebrows rise because really? Wasn't she supposed to be the one laying down the smack talk?

"Botan! Go join the others," Yama sudden called out from where he was sitting. The fuming Fujita obeyed, using the catwalks around the side of the building to get over to the starting line.

Meanwhile, the Fujita named Tsubaki was acting as the announcer for the live feed and was naming off Gogo's opponents and reiterating the rules. It was like a standard roller derby in some respects - the Fujitas had to skate together as a team with no one getting too far ahead or falling too far behind the pack, Gogo had to lap them to score, and there was a timer - and different in others, such as the fact she had to pass _all_ of the Fujitas to score, they were all carrying weapons of some sort, and there wasn't a pivot Gogo could rely on if things went sour.

They were setting a time of five minutes up on the big fancy scoreboard hanging over the middle of the track. While bouts went on for thirty minutes, five minutes was a lot for a single jam. Then again, this wasn't a normal track and Gogo had a feeling she'd need every second even if she could go full speed. There wasn't going to be time to properly feel out all of the traps she had no doubt existed and Gogo was going to have to face them head on.

"Everyone ready? On your marks."

Gogo crouched on her starting line, hand out for balance and all too aware of the Fujitas on the line several meters in front of her.

"Go!"

They were off, the Fujitas taking advantage of the sharp drop in front of them to gain speed while Gogo had to start on the straightaway. She got enough speed going by the time she hit the downslope that she was skating up on the wall on the U-turn, which was the only thing that allowed her to miss being barbecued by the first blast of a flamethrower built into the far wall. Gogo managed to avoid three more gouts of flame and cleared the flame throwers only to be in range of the Fujitas' weapons.

Gogo dodged two ball and chains, ducked under Botan's bat and knocked the metal fan and spiked parasol away with her discs before managing to break free in time to get a slight lead before hitting the sharp corner (and it was sharp, she noted, probably a few degrees acute of ninety) and nearly got herself squished by the stomper that came down on the track. She barely got past it, putting it between her and the Fujitas hot on her heels, only to be stopped by stompers number two and three.

Gogo suddenly wished Wasabi was here to whisper the timing of this thing through her helmet's radio. She frowned and got ready to dash. Once number two was high enough to get under, Gogo flung herself under it and kept going because the third was already on the way down. She got through, only because she laid her selfflat like a limbo dancer and took advantage of the discs on her wrists to keep going. By the time she got back upright, she was entering a section with spikes on the walls.

The spiked walls weren't actually that bad as long as she stayed in the center of the increasing curve, but Gogo made a mental note not to get caught in that section with the Fujitas. Being body-checked there would be deadly. Then the walls fell away and Gogo came to an abrupt stop because who the hell put a tightrope over a pit in the middle of a roller derby track? Okay, so it was actually a beam but it was narrow enough that only one foot would fit at a time.

Gogo glanced up at Tadashi, who was bound practically above the other end of the beam. He gave her a worried look and an encouraging smile.

"You can do this," he stated. In the distance, she could hear Hiro shouting, "Go, Gogo! They're catching up!"

Right. She needed to get on with it because the clock was still ticking. Gogo backed up a bit, took a deep breath as she aimed herself, then sent herself barreling at the beam, crouching at the last second with one foot in front of the other - practically crossed because of the location of her wheels - and down the beam. She wobbled slightly at the end as she lost her momentum but she made it.

"Yes!" Tadashi cheered before warning, "Be careful around that corner. The floor looks weird."

Gogo nodded and worked on getting her speed up enough to take the wide curve up on the wall. The floor did look weird, but she wasn't going to be able to stay up on the wall, what with another U-turn coming up. She was glad she got her speed up, however, because it meant when she crossed over she was moving fast enough that she didn't fall when the floor gave way, although she cursed like mad. Who the hell designed this place?

Then Gogo was in the second U-turn and several more flamethrowers suddenly turned on, prompting her to throw her discs at them in an attempt to turn them off before they burned her face off. It worked, although she had to dodge two others while waiting for her discs to return. Thankfully the floor was stable in this section. Then she was past a soft turn and on a straight away. There was a short wall of spikes she'd have to travel down the middle of and at some speed if she wanted to be able to make the jump right after. Gogo grinned and shot down the middle only to realize once she was surrounded by the spikes that they were moving in on her. She put on a burst of speed and barely cleared them before hitting the slight ramp that would give her the air she needed to avoid a pit of spikes. Gogo hit the landing perfectly and yelped as the floor immediately dropped and tried to dump her into the pit of spikes behind her.

"GOGO!" both Hiro and Tadashi yelled in alarm while the crowd jeered and hollered, although Tadashi quickly added, "Fulcrum!"

Right, find where the thing pivoted. Her sudden weight had sent the floor down but she still had just enough momentum to roll up to where the floor was hinged like a teeter-totter and slightly past. To her relief, the floor started to swing the other way, although it kept going. Gogo scooted back so she was at the center of the fulcrum but she'd seen enough to know the next section was also hinged. With a glare, she calculated where the center would be and jumped. The floor wobbled but didn't try and kill her outright, which was a plus. A shift of her weight to make the far end dip down showed the next section of floor was solid so she jumped to it and continued on. There was a soft incline up back towards the starting section and the stands where the crowd booed her as she zoomed past and back down into the death trap. 

Gogo barely caught a glance at the time-clock as she did and she grit her teeth. She'd taken way too long figuring out the traps. No time to pause any more; she'd have to take them all head on as fast as possible. She had some Fujitas to catch up with.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I had way too much fun designing the track. *evil cackle* I even sketched a rough and ugly sketch so I'd know for certain where everything was.
> 
> _Kinbaku-bi_ (lit. 'the beauty of tight binding'), as you might have guessed from the translation, is Japanese-style rope bondage. A _karada_ is a rope harness and usually patterned. One, for example, is based off a tortoise-shell pattern. An _ebi_ is a shrimp tie. It's probably the oldest form of Japanese rope bondage and actually started out as a way to punish and torture people because the position, if held for too long, is very painful. You can easily find images in various places, including Wikipedia, but none of them are terribly safe for work, so search at your own risk.
> 
> The treatment for someone on hallucinogens really is to get them to a quiet place and offer support - albeit the support is probably different than what Baymax offered - along with benzodiazepines if the person is extremely agitated or experiencing seizures. That's usually for bad trips, though. People on good trips don't tend to seek out healthcare professionals. And of course, Baymax is going to find the one person in the crowd who might need his help. Not that he's going to be terribly helpful now... 
> 
> Oh, and since someone asked in a review and I forgot to mention it earlier, Ms. Rudolph is Aunt Cass. Yama refers to her as Cass Rudolph in an earlier chapter. I have her name as that because I have her as the boys' maternal aunt and there's no sign of the last name in the movie, including the credits, so I borrowed her voice actress's last name.


	8. Falling Short

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm terribly sorry about the delay on this, but the fact is I worked for dang near two weeks straight. I had seven days on, one day off (which was spent on errands and laundry) and then another five on. The first day I had off after that mess was spent sleeping in followed by me trying to type up as much of the stuff I'd written out long-hand during lunch breaks during that time as I could. Considering I average about 1,000 words a day in my lunch breaks (although not all of it is fanfiction - quite a bit is original), that meant I was trying to catch up on about 12,000 words worth of writing for the various things I'm working on. That's not including any little bits and bobs that strike me and I end up scribbling down on scratch paper or right as I'm about to fall asleep. As you might have guessed, that takes time. So that's why this is late. On the plus side, all of the other projects are also moving along and you can probably expect updates to _Big Heroes One-Shots_ and _Father Knows Best_ here pretty soon.
> 
> I listened to various songs while writing this bit. As you might have noticed, I am extremely eclectic in my musical tastes and tend to listen more for the emotion of the music than the lyrics. In addition to the songs mentioned in earlier chapters, I have added to my playlist, oddly enough, _The Kraken_ from the Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest soundtrack, _Courtesy Call_ by Thousand Foot Krutch, and _Pretty Handsome Awkward_ by The Used (and if that song title isn't like the best description of the Hamada brothers, I don't know what is).

Chapter 8 - Falling Short

Gogo managed to get past the stompers on her second lap by getting up high enough on the wall to go over the first before dropping down and getting under the second before it slammed down and then easily managing the third while it was still on it's way back up. After that was the long, curved spike wall. Being stuck in the center, however, meant she nearly missed seeing the Fujitas before they attempted to body slam her into the last of the spikes.

Gogo not only managed to dodge the spiked end of Ayame's furled parasol but also grabbed the girl as she over-extended, prevented her from accidentally impaling herself on the spikes, and twisted the girl's arm so the parasol opened and protected them both from the attacks of the other four. The attacks bounced off the fabric of the parasol, making Gogo wonder what the hell it was made out of.

Ayame hissed and spat and viciously elbowed Gogo in the side. Gogo winced because that skull elbow pad the girl had hidden under her long sleeves was hard and pointed and it definitely left a bruise, although Gogo's armor protected her from anything worse. Time to get rid of the unwilling hostage.

Remembering how Yokai had managed to turn her and Honey Lemon's attacks against each other the first time they'd fought (and she hated the fact it was easier to think of him as Yokai rather than the man he'd once been), Gogo closed the parasol, grabbed it further up the haft while letting Ayame go, and swung. Ayame let out a surprised squeak as she was swung out on the end of the parasol only to bodily slam into Sakura and Ran, body checking all three into the into the brief bit of safe wall between the spikes and the pit. Gogo let go of the parasol before it's spiked end could cause her damage as Ayame attempted to unfurl it again even as she struggled to get back up.

"Look out, Gogo!" Tadashi suddenly hollered. Gogo was already moving before he finished calling out her name and barely avoided getting brained by Botan's bat. Gogo flung the discs at her wrists and took out Hinata, but Botan ducked. The red-head also dodged the larger disc Gogo detached from her ankle and swung. Botan gave Gogo a smug grin when Gogo was forced to immediately let the disc be pulled back to her ankle after the swing or lose her balance, but Gogo just smirked. If she hadn't given Botan that clue that something was up, perhaps the red-head would've been hit by the returning discs. As it was, Botan had just enough warning to dodge them but, in her flailing, tripped over and fell on top of Hinata, making them both curse.

Gogo bum rushed the balance beam as fast as she could before the Fujitas could get back up and stop her, which wasn't nearly as fast as she would've liked considering the speed she'd lost in th fight. Gogo risked a quick look at Tadashi as she went by - he looked a cross between worried and relieved it hadn't gone worse - even as she heard the Fujitas shouting as they followed. Gogo was already getting back up to speed however.

Gogo spared a brief instant to debate taking out the trick floor in the next section to try and slow the Fujitas down, but quickly dismissed it. She didn't like them - an understatement if there ever was one - but she didn't want them dead nor did she really want to encounter the group as they navigated that section. Instead, she used her speed to take the crossover as a jump, as if she was skating across the non-existent ceiling of a pipe, took out the flamethrower at the corner that she wasn't in a position to avoid, before entering the most dangerous straightaway on the entire track.

The spikes started moving in before she reached them, despite the fact she was going faster this time. She was already soaring, however, and got past them easily enough but next was the hard part. She had enough speed to make the jump but too much or too little would send the floor rocking.

Aiming for where she was fairly certain the floor pivoted, Gogo hit and twisted to bleed off speed. The floor teetered back and forth but didn't dump her before she used the momentum she still had to leap to the next section. Her previous actions had left the end closer to the jump too high to make it to the center, so it immediately started tilting back as soon as she landed but a quick roll got her to the center and from there to stable ground was just a quick hop. Then she was on the safest stretch of the track, if she ignored the raucous crowd jeering and throwing abuse in her direction. A chain-link fence prevented everything else they were throwing from getting near enough to matter.

"Yeah, Gogo!" Hiro cheered as she passed him. Gogo nodded, face grimly determined as she caught sight of the timer. She had just a little over two minutes left. She could do this. She had to.

~*~*~*~*~*~

Hiro reached out with his foot and pressed it up firmly against the railing separating him from the drop below, tensed the leg still standing on the grating that acted as the floor, and then jumped so both feet were on the railing and he was holding the bar he was handcuffed to.

"Yes!" Hiro whispered because the position, while precarious, gave his wrists a lot more leeway _and_ he got a slightly better view of the track. He was kind of actually getting into the whole roller derby race thing. Not that he liked the fact he and Tadashi were the grand prize - hell no! - but because, well, it was quite the sight. Oh, he'd had his heart in his throat when that trick floor had given way under Gogo's weight, but she'd gotten safely past it and, now that she had a feel for the track, Gogo was _flying_.

"Look out, Gogo!" Hiro heard Tadashi cry out because apparently she'd caught up to the Fujitas over by him, right where Hiro couldn't see, damn it. It was obviously an interesting sight, too, based on the expressions Tadashi was making.

Then his big brother slumped in obvious relief, so Hiro shouted, "Go, Gogo, go!" only to realize after he'd said it that it sounded kind of stupid. Hiro pursed his lips but didn't even manage a pout before Gogo suddenly flipped up in the air, making him whoop at the sight. Then she was at that second batch of flamethrowers, which she was still taking out with her discs, followed by that freaking dangerous straightaway. 

The spikes didn't move constantly like the stompers, so Hiro wondered what triggered them. Was there a pressure plate in the floor or was someone pressing a button somewhere? Hiro was betting on the latter because the first time they didn't start moving until Gogo was in the middle of them and this time they were moving before she'd quite reached them, despite the fact she was moving faster this time. They almost caught her, but even with someone cheating, Gogo was too fast and Hiro cheered as Gogo squeezed past them and into the jump. 

She hit the center of the first part of the trick floor, but either the floor was really precariously balanced or Gogo wasn't actually able to stop on a dime despite her best effort because the floor started to tip her forward, forcing Gogo to quickly leap to the second section. That bit tried to dump her backward until she got it to wobble with her at the pivot point. A quick leap onto the real floor as soon as she could got Gogo past the obstacle.

"Yeah, Gogo!" Hiro hollered as she blew past while the rest of the crowd booed. Well, except for Tadashi, who was still shouting encouragements. Hiro lost sight of her once more as she got past the stompers but caught a glimpse of her as she took the curved by Tadashi, once again going up into the air. It was Tadashi's yell of, "Careful!" that reminded Hiro of the more mobile danger on the track and he quickly scanned for the Fujitas, eyes widening as he saw them.

"Ambush!" he shouted in warning because that looked precisely like what the Fujitas were up to.

~*~*~*~*~*~

It had been an unspoken agreement to stay where they were after calling Aunt Cass. Even if they'd been able to leave right away (and not even Fred could arrange a private jet that fast), it was still an hour and a half flight back to San Fransokyo and longer by car if they left the way they came. By the time they got there, it would all be over, so they'd stayed put at the one location where they could actually keep track of what was going down. The area around the bar was noisy as people roared their approval or disapproval over the events depicted on the TV and money changed hands. Gogo was well into her third time around the track now and still had the better part of two minutes left on the timer.

"That hero chick is crazy!" a man next to Honey Lemon gushed.

"I know, right?!" Honey Lemon exuberantly agreed while Fred and Wasabi whooped as Gogo cleared the balance beam in record time. Then Fred practically fell out of his chair as he yelped, "Oh no! Ambush!" Distantly, on the TV, Hiro could be heard trying to warn Gogo but it was too late.

The Fujitas the announcer called Hinata and Ran had a hold of the other end of each other's weapons, stretching the chains out from one side of the track to the other and at about the height of Gogo's knees and neck. Gogo, suddenly upon them, jumped and curled into a ball, barely clearing the chains as Ran and Hinata tried whipping them together as Gogo passed between. But that put Gogo right in the path of the bat.

There was a crunch and a grunt of pain as the spiked length of wood hit the armor on Gogo's shoulder. The force of the hit made Gogo spin. No, wait, she was spinning on purpose, rolling with the blow to minimize the damage and get into a position to block Sakura's fans with her discs while she ducked a second swing of the bat. The wild swing of said bat forced Ayame back with a curse and gave Gogo the space she needed to dart past the pack and into the space between the spikes, which was already far too tight as they had started to close in while Gogo was caught up in the fight.

"She's not going to make it!" Wasabi panicked.

"She's gonna make it," Honey Lemon insisted, although she was practically shaking Fred as she clung to his shirt.

"She's not going to make it!" Wasabi repeated just before the spikes closed, Gogo on one side and the Fujitas on the other.

"She made it!" Honey Lemon whooped, throwing her hands in the air. "I told you she would!"

Fred nodded and pushed a glass at her. Honey Lemon took it, downed it, and plopped back down in her seat, only to go wide-eyed and say, "Oh, no! She's not going to make it!"

~*~*~*~*~*~

The spiked ball had missed anything vital but the chain had managed to wrap around her leg and trip her up. Gogo scowled as she freed her leg but the spiked walls were already separating to let the Fujitas through and Gogo didn't have enough momentum to make it to the pivot point of the trick floor, assuming she could even make the jump. The chain she was still holding tugged in her grip as the blonde Fujita holding the other end tried to pull it back and Gogo froze as an insanely crazy idea suddenly struck her. She looked at the trick floor, down at the chain, and then at the Fujitas starting to work their way past the spikes before smiling. She'd always wanted to try something like this. As soon as there was enough space between the spikes for the blonde to start forcing her way through, Gogo skated up and grabbed her, still holding onto the chain of the blonde's weapon.

"Hold on," she commanded.

"Huh? Wait!" the light-haired Fujita cried out in a panicked tone as she was dragged by Gogo to the jump. The Fujita, Hinata, wailed in alarm even as Gogo barely hit the edge of the trick floor while whipping the chain, and thus the girl, forward. Hinata hit the rising end of the trick floor with some force, which sent Gogo catapulting well past the remaining trick floor and even gave her a bit of a speed boost on the incline up towards the stands. Hinata shrieked abuse at her from where she was hanging, Gogo having managed to hook the spiked ball on the far edge of the trick platform. Gogo ignored it. The girl was alive and, with a bit of effort, would be able to get the floor centered again. Gogo, in the meantime, had a roller derby to win.

~*~*~*~*~*~

"Holy mother of Megazod! Did you just see that?!"

"I saw it! I saw it! Holy... She did _not_ just do that!" Wasabi replied even as the bar around them erupted in noise that varied between cheers and boos depending on how the person had betted.

"Wait. Yes! She did it! That was three times! She's won, right!" Honey Lemon shouted, hugging the bar patron next to her. He grunted and stated, "Not yet, she hasn't. This is roller derby. That first pass didn't count."

"Wait, what?" Wasabi asked, eyes wide.

"It's a roller derby. She has to _lap them_. In other words, she still has to go around the course and pass all the Fujitas again."

Honey Lemon, Fred, and Wasabi exchanged looks before looking grimly back at the TV. There was considerably less than a minute left on the clock.

~*~*~*~*~*~

Hiro's eyes flickered towards the timer and winced at how little time was left, before he went back to warily watching the Fujitas navigate the jump and tricky flooring that followed. The last Fujita was balanced on the second section of flooring when Gogo came zooming up. The Fujitas quickly formed a wall bristling with weapons ans started swinging before Gogo could clear the first section of trick floor. With the last Fujita still balanced on the second section, it was a rather interesting fight, but not one Gogo could afford.

"Time, Gogo!" Hiro shouted in warning before counting out the time left. "Thirteen! Twelve! Eleven!"

The crowd took up the count Hiro started, the words turning into a veritable roar, while Gogo suddenly tackled the Fujita clear of the trick floors before scrambling to avoid weapons and pass the Fujitas.

Ten... Nine... Eight...

Gogo avoided a swing of Botan's bat and tripped the woman up, but took a hit from Sakura's fans before she managed to shove the fangirl into Hinata before she could release the spiked ball she was swinging.

Seven... Six... Five...

Ayame and her parasol were next. Gogo managed to tangle it with the chain of Ran's weapon.

Four... Three...

Ran surprised Gogo by tackling her. Gogo fought free of the tall woman's grip even as Tadashi shouted Gogo's name and Hiro hollered, "Foul!"

Two...

Gogo shoved free even as Ran lunged forward, knocking her back down.

One...

Gogo kicked the woman as she pushed herself forward desperately, only for two more Fujitas to dog-pile on her.

BZZZZT!

There was a moment of ringing silence following the loud noise even as everyone breathlessly awaited the verdict. Both Gogo and Ran had their hands extended but, while Gogo was a good head further down the track than any of the Fujitas, Ran's hands extended just barely past Gogo's own.

"Aw," Tsubaki's voice rang from the announcer's box, laced with false pity, "Looks like the Big Hero didn't make it past _all _the Fujitas."__

__~*~*~*~*~*~_ _

__"WHAT?!" Wasabi shouted right before the bar erupted into chaos._ _

__"Oh no," Honey Lemon whispered under the noise._ _

__~*~*~*~*~*~_ _

__"No. No no no," Hiro muttered, shaking his head. He looked at his brother and started struggling desperately when he saw several goons uncuffing Tadashi and dragging him away. Then several more of the men came to fetch him. Hiro tried fighting them as they unbound him from the bar, but his small, scrawny body was no real match against the two men. They grabbed his arms and unceremoniously dragged him down the stairs._ _

__Yama had already climbed to the top of the tall platform near the bleachers that was acting as a stage and was surveying the scene with a gloating grin. More importantly, Hiro was being pulled up onto the stage and it seemed to be the destination Tadashi's captors had in mind as well._ _

__"Yama!" Hiro shouted as he twisted in the grip of the men holding him, "Let him go, Yama! Or are you going to break your word?"_ _

__"Patience, kid. The show's not over yet," Yama calmly replied. Hiro huffed and stamped his foot in an admittedly childish gesture as he glared at the man. Then the participants rolled up, the Fujitas forming a wide circle around Gogo. Hiro swallowed, suddenly nervous. Now was the moment of truth._ _

__"I must congratulate you, Big Hero. You put on one hell of a show," Yama started with a nod of acknowledgment. "And, as per our deal, you go free and so does one of the brothers."_ _

__Hiro stumbled as he was suddenly let go and shoved forward. What? Hiro panicked because he hadn't expected to be the one let go if Gogo lost. He was the one Yama wanted revenge on, after all. Then again, separating him from Tadashi was probably the worst thing the man could do to him._ _

__"Tadashi!" he shouted at his brother, who was quickly being surrounded by the Fujitas. One of them had slipped a rope around his brother's neck and was using it to pull him away even as he tried shrugging off the hands holding him._ _

__"Gogo!" Tadashi shouted as he was pulled away, "Take Hiro and go!"_ _

__Gogo's expression hardened. Then she shouted, "How about you let them both go and you keep me instead?"_ _

__Yama put up his hand, making the Fujitas pause with their captive._ _

__"You know you want me," Gogo challenged. "One of the Big Heroes at your beck and call. After all, I did just lap your Fujitas multiple times on their own track."_ _

__Yama tapped his fingers against his folded arms and stated, "Tempting. Extremely tempting. But I've already got an offer for that one. One hundred thousand for Tadashi Hamada wrapped up in a neat little bow if you lost. Unless you can offer me more?"_ _

__Hiro gritted his teeth. Gogo was a college student. No way she had that kind of money. Fred might, but Fred was hours away and how would he manage to explain away that kind of expense? Hell, who the hell _buys_ people?_ _

__~*~*~*~*~*~_ _

__Fred cursed and kept cursing as he scrambled for his phone. He shoved Wasabi into the seat he quickly vacated and Honey Lemon heard Fred say, "Heathcliff? We've got a sitch," into the phone as he pushed his way through the crowd, no doubt to find a more private location. Honey Lemon spared him a worried glance before staring at the TV in dread again._ _

__"Please," she whispered even as Wasabi wrapped an arm around her shoulders in a comforting gesture. "Please."_ _

__~*~*~*~*~*~_ _

__Gogo tensed and clenched her fists. Hiro twisted up his face in an attempt to keep himself from crying because he recognized that as her answer. So did Yama._ _

__"Get him ready for his new owner, girls," the man ordered with a gesture of his head in Tadashi's direction._ _

__"No!" Hiro shouted as they started to drag Tadashi away. "Keep me! I-I'll do whatever it is you want! I'll design those robots you asked for, any tech you want, _anything_. Just let Tadashi go!"_ _

__"Hiro, no!" Tadashi shouted before he was brusquely gagged by a Fujita who hissed, "Shut up, Pretty Boy." Yama just laughed._ _

__"I get it," the large man said even as he strode over and grabbed Tadashi by the chin, making Tadashi try and struggle away from the man. "The Big Hero won't leave without the boy and the boy won't leave without his brother so, even though two of you have your freedom and can walk right out that door, you won't as long as I have this one."_ _

__Hiro grimaced and Gogo shifted her stance but neither of them said anything because they both knew it was true. Even if Gogo dragged Hiro out right now, he wouldn't leave willingly and would likely run right back if it meant saving Tadashi. Yama chuckled._ _

__"Contact this one's buyer," Yama ordered with a leer at Tadashi, who furiously tried to jerk away. "Tell them I just received a better offer. Unless they can offer more?" A man nodded and ran off._ _

__"You'll have the Big Heroes after you," Gogo threatened. "Not just me, but the whole team. Do you really want that?"_ _

__Yama's expression made it clear the answer to that was a resounding no. It looked like they were at a bit of an impasse when the man who ran off earlier came huffing back up._ _

__"Yama, sir, the buyer said they were willing to go up to five hundred thousand but they expect immediate delivery."_ _

__Hiro nearly choked on his own tongue. Someone was going to pay Yama half a million for Tadashi? He could practically see the man's eyes light up at the figure even as Yama hastily read the memo shoved at him._ _

__"Well, that makes things different."_ _

__"The hell it does!" Hiro argued, trying to get to his brother drag him out by force if necessary. He got shoved off the stage for his effort, Gogo barely catching him in time. Hiro froze when he heard her wince while setting him safely on the ground. Down off the stage, surrounded by people, the likelihood of them leaving unscathed looked a lot lower. Hiro's jaw set. He was still going to try it, though. No way was he letting these punks sell Tadashi, And he did his best to ignore the little voice that insisted he didn't really have a say in the matter._ _

__~*~*~*~*~*~_ _

__The adrenaline was starting to wear off. Gogo could tell because all of her injuries were starting to protest. Her bruised side ached, the other side of her torso had a gash that had bled a little when one of those damn fans had caught her, her left leg had bruises where the chain had wrapped around and the attached spiked ball had ripped the mesh and scraped her skin. Her shoulder was the biggest mess. Even though she'd rolled with the punch, so to speak, the spikes had punctured her armor and the skin beneath while the blunt trauma made Gogo wonder if her shoulder had been disconnected. At the very least, it was severely bruised in addition to the puncture wounds._ _

__Gogo tried to ignore it all in favor of the fantasy of knocking some sense into Hiro. Did he really think she was going to leave him there after all the trouble she'd gone through? Not a chance. Not that she was thrilled by the idea of them selling her friend - and whoever was buying obviously was _very_ interested if they were will to pay a cool half-million for Tadashi - but at this point, she'd take what she could get._ _

__Gogo had tried getting help, she'd tried stalling; hell, she'd tried offering herself in their place and nothing had worked. It frustrated and frightened her, although she did her best not to show it. Right now, the only option she had left was accepting her losses and making it out with what she could and damn Hiro for making that harder than it needed to be._ _

__"Tell the buyer they have a deal," Yama ordered before leering at Gogo. "Take the kid and go. And don't bother me or my people. The buyer's been using a pseudonym and is arranging an anonymous drop later tonight. In about an hour, your guess will be as good as mine as to where the guy will be. Tell your fellow Big Heroes that as well."_ _

__Gogo clenched her fists and seethed but nodded in acknowledgment. Hiro would probably come up with something to track Tadashi down by morning or, failing that, they'd just have Baymax scan the area once the others got back in town._ _

__"What?! No! You can't!" Hiro was begging now and it broke her heart to see it. She grabbed Hiro and held him close, disguising the embrace as an attempt to keep him from running for the stage as they dragged Tadashi off of it._ _

__"We'll get him back. Baymax can find him with a scan, right?" Gogo whispered beneath the sound of the crowd as the first few people decided it was over and started to press for the exits._ _

__"But that won't be until tomorrow at the earliest," Hiro whispered back, a haunted look in his eyes that never should've been there. "What will happen to him in the meantime?"_ _

__Gogo had no clue how to answer that but was saved from having to by the sound of a siren briefly whooping before falling silent, only to be replaced by a voice from the closest door shouting, "Shit! It's the cops!"_ _

__That was all it took for the crowd to panic. Gogo noticed several people looking at her and Hiro and quickly dove for the bleachers, dragging Hiro with her as she ducked underneath._ _

__"W-wait! Tadashi's back there!"_ _

__"He's currently worth half a million to Yama. No one's going to hurt your brother. Yama will kill them first. We, on the other hand, are prime hostage fodder. Now move!"_ _

__She dragged him along the top of the rink, around the machinery that had made the walls move and the stompers stomp and the flamethrowers all work. Several of the meaner-looking members of the audience were following them, much to their dismay. Then they reached the part of the track with the beam over the pit. Gogo screeched to a stop, but Hiro tripped into her and between her wheels and his natural clumsiness, they pitched over the edge and fell..._ _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And you thought my previous cliffhangers were evil. Review if you caught the rather egregious pun. Or if you didn't. That's cool too.


	9. Wheeling and Dealing

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You guys have no idea how much I cackled when Hiro informed me of how he planned to get from point A to point B.

Chapter 9 - Wheeling and Dealing

Tadashi was honestly terrified at that point in time. His brother _and_ Gogo had tried exchanging themselves for his freedom, although it hadn't worked, which he was both grateful for and alarmed by. That didn't change the fact he was being sold for half-a-million... well, he was assuming it was dollars and not yen, although people tended to use both in the city. Aunt Cass often complained about having to change the prices on the menu every time there was a currency shift, not to mention having to specify if the prices were in one or the other so people couldn't try and short-change her.

Half-a-million yen wasn't that much, really. Not so much that Yama would turn down the possibility of keeping all three of them hostage. But if half-a-million yen was far too low, then the same amount in dollars was ungodly high. It wasn't like Tadashi was famous or anything. Even that damn interview that had caused all of this had just basically referred to him as 'the supportive brother of teen genius Hiro Hamada'.

But they weren't buying Hiro, they were buying him and Tadashi was damned if he could figure out why. There was no reason to buy just him (and he was pretty certain his buyer wasn't Fred for that reason alone, because Fred would've made an offer for all three of them if he'd known what was going on), not that Tadashi could see. Well, nothing except for that one thing that woman had been pretty much threatening him with from the moment she'd seen him, but even if he was being sold as... as a sex slave or something, surely that amount was too high. It worried Tadashi that he couldn't fathom his buyer's motivation. It meant he had no idea of what to expect.

Tadashi had felt hope briefly flare to life when he became aware of the arrival of the police, but he was already being dragged to a trap door hidden behind the stage. He was sure Gogo would keep Hiro safe until they could reach the cops or the cops reached them, but Tadashi feared he'd be long gone by then.

The trap door led to a tunnel that opened out into a different warehouse than the one the track had been in, this one packed with shipping containers and several vehicles. Tadashi had fully expected to be shoved into the back of one of the unmarked vans, so was surprised when he was pushed into the back of a limo instead. While two of the masked men climbed into the front, Yama and three Fujitas got into the back and forced him to kneel on the floor, the rest getting into one of the vans.

"Mm, shame we can't play more, pretty boy," Botan murmured as she ran fingers through his hair. Tadashi tossed his head and moved as far away from her as possible. He glared at the red-head over his gag even as the other Fujitas giggled and Yama chuckled.

"Feisty one, isn't he?" Yama noted. "I wish his new owner luck in breaking him."

Tadashi snorted. He was certain his friends would think to use Baymax to find him long before then. At least, he hoped so.

~*~*~*~*~*~

Gogo wrapped herself around Hiro as they fell and twisted so she'd hit the bottom first because she was both older and wearing armor. It was a bit of a shock when they hit water. It was a water tank, Gogo realized as she and Hiro surfaced, splashing and spluttering. The black-painted walls, murky water, and dim lighting just made it _look_ impossibly deep but Gogo had actually brushed against the bottom briefly before forcing herself and Hiro the surface.

Privately, Gogo was a bit more grateful for the major water-proofing and automatic kill switch Wasabi and Tadashi had insisted be added to their suits just in case Yokai dumped them in the Bay again or something because they were what prevented her and Hiro from being electrocuted when they hit the water. However, the lack of electro-magnetism meant her wheels were all on the bottom of the tank, leaving her weaponless, and the weight of the armor plus her injuries weren't a good combination. That wasn't including the possibility of gaining an infection from the stale, murky water. Their pursuit was also figuring out where they'd gone based on the noise she was hearing. Gogo quickly cast around for a way out, but Hiro spied it first.

"There!" he cried before pushing away from Gogo and swimming towards a ladder inset in the tank's wall. They reached the bottom of the ladder right as the first guy splashed down behind them and started swimming after them. Hiro scrambled up the ladder like a monkey, Gogo hot on his heels, which was why she nearly got a foot in the face when Hiro baulked at the top.

The first of the guys chasing them had reached the ladder by that point and the ladder was short enough and he was tall enough to quickly reach Gogo's ankles moments after. Gogo kicked him, knocking him back into the water, only to realize Hiro had cleared the ladder while she was busy. She practically ran to the top and then silently cursed when she saw what had made Hiro pause.

The catwalks up above had a second set of stairs over in this section and a rather rough-looking crowd had gathered between there, the edge of the pit, and the doors leading out. A punk with the top of his head bleached had a hold of Hiro, his hand muffling any warnings Hiro had been trying to give.

"Give it up, hero. You ain't got no weapons and I ain't lettin' myself get the rap for kidnapping," the punk said even as the men coming up the ladder shoved Gogo forward.

"So you're going to take us hostage? What kind of idiots are you?" Gogo asked with a sneer. The crowd shifted and muttered.

"I ain't going to jail for you!" the punk insisted. 

Hiro, who'd been struggling the entire time, managed to pull the hand from his mouth and say, "Then don't!" The crowd paused and Hiro took advantage of their shock. "Say you thought it was a normal roller derby, found out too late it wasn't and your phones were blocked and you couldn't leave, but helped rescue us when you got the chance. If you let us go, we'll back you up. Right, Gogo?"

"Right." Gogo agreed to the plan with a nod of her head in addition to the verbal agreement. If it kept the crowd of former spectators from doing something stupid, she'd go along with it.

"That's crazy," the punk still holding Hiro insisted, only to look wild-eyed when he realized it didn't look like the majority of the crowd agreed with his assessment. "You're all crazy!"

A big black man hit the guy hard enough that he staggered and collapsed, letting Hiro go in the process.

"I saved the kid and the hero, so now I'm a hero," the large black man insisted with a sharp look around.

"That's right!" Hiro agreed with a bright grin.

"Who else wants to be a hero?" Gogo asked. Hands went up in the air and the ones that didn't immediately agree looked around nervously before putting theirs up too.

"Good. Now let's clear you with the police so they can chase down the _real_ bad guys."

~*~*~*~*~*~

"That was crazy and it never should've worked," Gogo informed Hiro once they were safely ensconced in an ambulance so their injuries could be treated. 

"Yeah, well, it did," Hiro shot back with a smug grin. He'd honestly made the speech up on the spot by asking himself what would Tadashi have said if he were there and was surprised and grateful that it had worked.

They'd exited the rear of the building just in front of the crowd, all of them holding their hands up just in case the cops got any ideas. With Gogo and Hiro both insisting the people who'd followed them out had been a captive audience who'd helped get them safely out, the police officers on the scene had no choice but to believe the story, especially since Gogo and Hiro kept insisting they leave the "poor spectators" alone and find out where Yama had gone with Tadashi. Hiro privately suspected the cops were only going along with their story because it meant they could pin that much more on Yama and his people once they caught them.

"Look at me, please," the EMT who'd ended up with Hiro after the other one quickly claimed Gogo commanded. She shone a penlight in Hiro's eyes, making him hiss in irritation before trying to blink away the afterimages. 

"Hm. Your pupils aren't dilating properly. Have you taken anything or were you given anything that might have caused that?"

"Uh, I dunno. They did knock me out twice with this ugly rag covered in something, though," Hiro replied. The EMT frowned.

"I'm not going to be able to give you anything for the pain you're no doubt in - those are some pretty impressive bruises - nor is anyone else until we get some lab work done on your blood. Whatever they gave you is apparently still in your system and we don't want to cause an adverse drug reaction."

"Yeah, no, that's okay," Hiro agreed with a wince.

"What are you doing?" Gogo suddenly demanded to know.

"I need you to take off the suit so I can treat you properly," the male EMT insisted. Gogo glanced at the open back door and Hiro followed her glance only to grimace at all of the curious onlookers right outside. Was that a media van pulling up over there? It was.

"Yeah, not going to happen," Gogo replied. "And don't even think about trying to cut it off, either, unless you want to get electrocuted."

"If I don't clean and wrap your wounds, you'll get an infection," the EMT pointed out.

"That's what antibiotics are for," Gogo retorted. Hiro huffed in amusement even as both EMTs rolled their eyes.

"Just leave it until you get her to the hospital," a new voice interjected. All four people in the ambulance looked at the newcomer as she pulled herself up into the back of the ambulance. The male EMT in particular scowled at the woman, who was dressed in a leather coat over a plain t-shirt and dark jeans.

"Who are you?" he asked. The woman, who looked to be of Middle Eastern descent now that Hiro was getting a good look at her, pulled a wallet out of an inner pocket of her jacket and flipped it open to show her badge.

"Detective Elizabeth Mazda. I'm afraid I'm going to have to commandeer your vehicle for a moment while I talk to these two."

"Come on, John," the female EMT said as she grabbed her male counterpart's shoulder and led him from the vehicle and past the cordon of police now surrounding the ambulance. Once they were alone, Detective Mazda focused on the two of them.

"Hiro Hamada and Gogo Tomago? Pleasure to meet you. I'm your new liaison, or will be after you sign the contract."

"Huh? What are you...? Never mind. What're you doing about Tadashi?"

"We've got several people looking for your brother and his kidnappers right now. Don't worry. We'll get him back."

Hiro frowned disbelievingly at the woman even as Gogo asked, "What contract?"

"Look, I'm going to be level with you. Vigilantism is illegal and we could easily throw you and the rest of your team behind bars for that and a few other things, up to and including reckless endangerment of a minor."

"WHAT?!" Hiro pretty much shrieked. Gogo, he noticed, didn't look surprised.

"You're not going to, though," Gogo pointed out.

"Not unless you force us to. You're not the first superheroes the city has dealt with before, so we actually have a contingency plan in place in case something like this ever happens. Vigilantism is illegal because it's usually related to revenge and not because the vigilante is actually interested in helping people or following the law while doing what they're doing.

"You guys, on the other hand, showed up with high tech suits just long enough to stop someone who was literally tearing a building apart, did it non-lethally and pretty much within legal bounds aside from the whole vigilante thing, and actually, when given a chance to back off, stayed long enough to assure the survival of another person before taking off. That, technically, makes the whole incident at Krei Tech a somewhat unusual citizen's arrest. Which is why I was brought in when it became clear you were involved in this mess."

"We're listening," Gogo stated, focusing entirely on Detective Mazda. The detective nodded.

"My mentor was the liaison with the last superhero this city ever had. They both retired some time back, but not before my mentor trained me to take his place if there was ever a new superhero. Basically, you and your team sign on as 'consultants'. I'd be the main person you'd be interacting with and not someone at a desk who wouldn't know what to do if you told them 'flying robots are attacking', which you apparently did," Mazda stated, with a quick grin at Hiro. Hiro nervously smiled back before he went back to intently listening to what the woman had to say.

"Anyway, you'd be interacting with me and not some desk jockey and if something comes up that we'd need your expertise on, we'd call you in. And if something happens to you, you can call us in and expect actual and immediate results. There's a few other perks, too. Not only would we not throw you in jail for vigilantism nor anything else related to your superhero work, but you'd get paid every time we call you in. And, while universal healthcare is, by definition, free, _we_ are capable of arranging privacy you wouldn't otherwise get. In other words, we can take you to the hospital and not only make sure you only get doctors and nurses who have been vetted and are being paid to keep silent on your secrets, we can also arrange for them to be your primary care doctors too, so you don't have to, for example, explain why you have what looks like a scar from a bullet wound to your everyday doctor."

"You'd know who we are?" Hiro blurted out before wincing because that was a pretty big mistake to make.

"Yes, we would. It's part of the deal. And thank you for confirming what I've suspected ever since Alistair Krei sicced the media on you. You're the purple one and your brother's White Knight, isn't he? It's why you trust him with the tech you invented," Mazda stated rather than questioned. Hiro and Gogo exchanged looks before Hiro sighed and nodded.

"Yeah. Does everyone know?"

"No, and with my help most people won't. But right now, all it would take is someone with an internet connection, an interest in who you know and interact with, a lot of time on their hands and there are a disturbing number of people with all three. That would be another advantage of working with us, by the way. If your identities come out - and I won't lie, it's more likely than not that they _will_ even with us trying to prevent it - you'll at least have the protection that comes from being connected to the San Fransokyo police force. We can probably get you on as consultants for the other cities in the area, too, like Oakohama and maybe even as far down as San Hosei.

"Really, this is a good deal for you and everyone else on your team. Without it, we will have to pull you in as illegal vigilantes. And the only real downside for you guys is the mandatory therapy."

"Wait, what?" Hiro demanded because, considering they already knew who he was, it really had been sounding like a good deal up until that point.

"People don't do this," Mazda stated, waving at Gogo's supersuit, "without a very, very good reason. And while the impression I'm getting from interacting with you is less the adult in the situation dragging a minor into something dangerous and more her trying to protect you from yourself-"

"Hey!" Hiro protested even as the detective continued on without a pause.

"-that doesn't change the fact that normal people don't do this kind of thing. Hence the mandatory therapy because if you don't already need it, it's all too likely you're going to. On the plus side, it's only once a month unless something major happens, although you can choose to see the therapist we arrange more often."

Hiro ran a hand down his face before looking at Gogo. She was looking back but briefly angled her head at Mazda in an obvious question. She was going to take his lead in this. Hiro frowned at her obvious injuries and the knowledge that there were very likely some not-so-obvious ones under her supersuit before coming to a decision.

"Right. I can't speak for anyone not here - the others are out of town and Tadashi's kind of been _kidnapped_ \- but the two of us will sign your stupid contract."

"Great. I'll get it from the car. Stay here."

"They'll cart us off to the nearest hospital before you get back," Gogo stated as she followed Mazda out the back door. She got interrupted by a dripping wet man standing just on the other side of the police cordon.

"Hey, Hero! Catch!" he called out before tossing Gogo the discs he'd obviously gone swimming for. Gogo caught them with the electromagnets on her suit and nodded at the guy in thanks before checking the discs over for any damage. Hiro couldn't see anything from his angle, but he knew Gogo was a bit of a perfectionist when it came to her wheels. Then he noticed Mazda had paused at the edge of the cordon as well.

"Detective Mazda?" he called. She turned and gave him a vague smile.

"Well, we might have gotten a lead on your brother's location." 

The detective startled when she was suddenly face-to-face with a determined Gogo.

"Where?" Gogo demanded. The detective rattled off two addresses before realizing she probably shouldn't have and adding, "But there's no proof anything's at either one. They're just the most likely places for a drop-off like this."

"They're a start," Gogo replied before suddenly taking off.

"Wait, Gogo!" Hiro cried out only to pout when she ignored him, as did the detective and the officers, who were quickly moving to their cars. Damn it all, he wanted to save Tadashi too! But Gogo had wheels and what did Hiro have? A look around revealed he had more than he'd initially assumed. 

Driving couldn't be that hard, after all, right? He'd seen Tadashi and Gogo and Aunt Cass and Wasabi all drive before and Hiro had always had a knack with machines. Besides, it wasn't like they were really using it, after all. It was just kind of sitting there.

Turned out driving was harder than he'd anticipated, what with all the different things he had to keep track of at the same time. It didn't help that the ambulance had one heck of a complicated dashboard but, hey, the GPS worked. Hiro winced as he accidentally backed up into a cop car before figuring out what he'd done wrong. So that's what the R meant. Since there wasn't an F for forward, he had to guess again at what gear to put the thing in but hey, that D surrounded by an O looked promising.

"Yes," he quietly cheered when the ambulance started moving forward. Then the radio started squawking at him. Hiro ignored it and the frantic questions issuing from it until a calm and familiar voice said, "Hey, kid, it's Mazda. I'm assuming you know how to answer a radio, so pick up and talk to me."

"Yeah, what do you want?" Hiro asked as he fumbled to concentrate on the radio, the GPS, and his driving.

"You're not legal to drive anything, much less an ambulance, are you?"

"Nope!" Hiro cheerfully replied, "But there's no way I'm just sitting put if I can help Tadashi. Besides, I have a plan."

There was a pause and then a sigh.

"You owe me for this, kid. Where do you need us?"

"Following me. By the way, where are the lights and siren on this thing? I'll need them to play catch up to Gogo."

Aunt Cass was going to kill him once she caught wind of this, assuming Tadashi didn't beat her to it, but if it Tadashi was there to beat him up, it would so be worth it. So Hiro smiled as he followed Mazda's instructions to turn on the lights and siren. 

"Hang on, Tadashi," he muttered to himself. "Help's on the way."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The decision to have yen and dollars both be used in the city is based on the bot fight scene in the movie. Hiro obviously puts coins into the pot, which is kind of ridiculous if they're using dollars in that scene. If they're using yen, however, then it would make sense for Hiro to be tossing in 500 yen coins, which are worth, at this point in time, around $4.20 USD. By the way, that is the highest denomination coin in any currency and makes them prone to being counterfeited.
> 
> Elizabeth Mazda is a rather loose expy of Eliza Maza from Disney's Gargoyles, so if she seems familiar, that's why.
> 
> San Hosei is, obviously, San Jose. Hosei is a Japanese name much in the same way Jose is a Spanish name. The fact they both sound a lot alike is just coincidence. That being said, if you search for Hosei and Japanese in the same search, the first thing that comes up is Hosei University in Tokyo, which has among their many partner universities, San Jose State University (because I'm obviously not the only person who likes the pun) and Cal State East Bay in San Francisco.
> 
> I also have several reasons for introducing the idea of the guys being police consultants. It's pretty much the only way they could legally continue the whole superhero thing, for one, two, it allows for the team to get involved in stuff they're not personally connected to and, three, the comics version of the team actually works for the Japanese government and this is the closest I can get to mimicking that while keeping it down to the San Fransokyo area.


	10. Traveling By Ambulance

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Meh, this one went under several rewrites and I'm still not one hundred percent happy with it, but at least it's not bad. There's some cross-dressing and drag queens in this chapter, because I'm not quite finished having fun with the team members in Los Edos yet. ^_^

Chapter 10 - Traveling By Ambulance

The video feed to Los Edos cut off not long after the police arrived at the roller derby, making the casino patrons who'd been watching boo.

"Hey, who bet the police would show?" one person asked as they went over who'd bet what. There was a pause and then the sound of angry muttering as people realized the seats Honey Lemon and Wasabi had been sitting in were empty.

Further into the club, Wasabi whined, "Where are Fred and Baymax? We need to get out of here before people average out the square angles and figure out we're the hypotenuse."

"I think I see Baymax," Honey Lemon insisted as she pulled Wasabi towards a quieter bar than the one they'd just left. The bartender gave them a look over as they approached before putting his hand on the receiver of the phone he was holding and asking, "Which one's yours?"

"Uh, the one in the middle," Wasabi admitted with a wince as he realized they'd forgotten to charge Baymax. Tadashi had even warned them Baymax had been running for several days straight and would need a charge by that evening. The bartender, in the meantime, nodded and removed his hand from the phone.

"Make that two taxis, not three. One's buddies came to pick him up."

Baymax let out a "Whee!" as Wasabi and Honey Lemon shouldered his weight and started to head for the door. there were four men with holstered guns guarding the door. The moment one spotted the trio, he pointed them out to the others and they started to approach, hands hovering over their weapons. Honey Lemon and Wasabi both squeaked in alarm before quickly fleeing, taking advantage of the crowd. Then they both yelped - and Baymax went "Whee!" again - when they were suddenly pulled into a service hallway.

"This way, guys," Fred said as he let his friends go. "Turns out one of my mom's old friends owns the place next door and they've got us a way out."

"Oh, thank goodness," Wasabi sighed as Fred led the way to an alley and then to the back door of the next building over. Fred did the 'shave-and-a-haircut' knock and the door was quickly opened and all of them dragged in.

"There you are, sugar. We were starting to worry you weren't going to make it," a drag queen about the same size and coloring as Wasabi stated. In fact, a quick look around showed there were a lot of drag queens hanging around in various states of dress.

"Come on, let's get you lot disguised so we can get your car and all of you to the safe house."

"Thanks, Lola!" Fred enthused. The drag queen nodded and shoved them towards a set of curtains that would give each of them some privacy to change. She paused only to study Wasabi for a moment.

"I have the perfect pair of kinky boots for you, and an outfit to match," Lola told Wasabi.

"Uh..." Wasabi began before being cut off by Lola snapping at two others, "Jem, you got the girl. Ariane, you got my bestie's baby boy. Move it, girls!"

Lola and the drag queen Wasabi was assuming was Ariane quickly started going through a huge rack of clothes while a tall, thin individual in a cheerful orange sundress - presumably Jem - approached Honey Lemon with a huge makeup case.

"OMG! I love your clothes! They're adorable! Where'd you get them?" Jem squealed.

"Thank you! It's so hard to find cute clothes for my body type, so I make them myself. In fact, I've started a little online boutique! Here, I think I have a business card!" Honey Lemon enthusiastically replied before diving into her purse. With everyone thus occupied, Wasabi quickly started to question Fred.

"What all were you doing on your phone? Did you buy the others' freedom or something?"

"Huh? Oh, no. I was getting Heathcliff to tell the police where the most likely hostage exchange points close to the roller derby were."

Wasabi frowned and asked, "Why would your butler know that?"

"I dunno. I've never asked," Fred replied with a shrug before adding, "But Heathcliff also arranged for Lola to help us out. She's good people."

"Huh," Wasabi said before blinking as a pair of brightly colored high-heeled boots were suddenly shoved at him. He then stated without thinking, "Wow, those are some kinky boots."

"Yep!" Lola stated with a grin, "and here's the rest of your outfit. Now shoo! Go change!"

By the time Wasabi stepped out of his makeshift dressing room in the boots, skimpy top, and what felt like a criminally short skirt that he kept tugging at self-consciously, Fred had been decked out in a sundress and was having his hair done up in a fancy braid by one drag queen while another applied makeup to his face. Honey Lemon was in slightly more masculine clothes and had somehow gained a five o'clock shadow, while Baymax looked disturbingly like a blow-up doll what with the dress, wig, and heavy makeup that had replaced the coat and hat. 

Wasabi didn't see much more than that before Lola grabbed him to make him over as well. After that was done - and Honey Lemon managed a quick photo - they all headed out of Lola's club/casino and to the parking lot they shared with Yama's casino. They were intercepted by two of the armed men from the casino.

"Hey! You lot seen a chick and two guys in your place?" one asked while the other sneered at them.

"I am Bayhealthmaxcare. I will scan you scan complete. You are a very hairy pretty baby," Baymax suddenly announced, leaning drunkenly close to the man. Wasabi's eyebrows shot up and there was the sound of a muffled high-pitched giggle that sounded suspiciously like Fred.

"Sorry, boys, but we were the last ones in and we're calling it a night. Now if you'll excuse us, Bette here's had a bit too much, as you can tell," Lola calmly claimed.

"Uh, yeah," the gunman who'd spoken agreed, giving Baymax a disquieted look.

"Hairy pretty baby," his colleague snickered, prompting the first man to elbow him.

"Shut up!" he hissed before waving the group past.

"You and I will get your car, sweetie," Lola informed Wasabi as she subtly pushed him towards said vehicle while the others split up to get into different ones. Wasabi had to admit Lola was excellent at clear and concise directions and everyone eventually ended up at a house in a lower-middle-class neighborhood that nevertheless showed a lot of love and care had gone into it, both inside and out.

"You'll be safe here," Lola told them after showing the group their rooms even as several of the queens brought up their luggage and Baymax's charging case.

"Thank you for this," Wasabi finally managed, while Fred and Honey Lemon enthusiastically echoed him.

"It's no problem. There's no favors between friends," Lola replied, brushing it off. She did stop in the doorway to add, "And I hope those friends of yours are alright."

"Yeah, me too," Wasabi replied as Lola left. 

~*~*~*~*~*~

The drop-off location was, unsurprisingly, in a not-so-nice part of town. Tadashi couldn't recognize the area, which suggested it was one of the ones he tried to avoid and that even Hiro wouldn't go bot-fighting in. They stopped the limo right by something that was basically a glorified alleyway surrounded by run-down buildings and the man in the front passenger seat got out of the vehicle in order to approach a bit of bent metal rebar that was sticking out of the side of one of the buildings.

A metal briefcase was handcuffed to the bar and an envelope with Yama's name typed on it in a plain font had been taped to the side. The smaller of the two men fetched the envelop and handed it to Yama, who opened it to pull out a set of keys and a letter. The key was handed to the man who'd fetched the envelope, who proceeded to use them to undo the cuffs and open the briefcase.

"Boss, it's yen!" the man shouted in surprise. Yama, who was still holding the letter, suddenly read it out loud in response.

"'No one has that much money just laying around, but please consider the five hundred thousand yen in the case as the down payment. The rest will be put in a bank account, information below, once Tadashi Hamada is in my possession. Use the handcuffs from the case to bind him, please.' Huh. Some nerve... But probably on the up and up. That's a Swiss bank account. Bind him to the pipe."

Tadashi hissed in pain when the man pulled him out of the limo. Then there was a pause and the man cursed when Tadashi didn't even manage to stay standing.

"Sorry," Tadashi quietly stated, trying his best to look both cowed and apologetic, "but my legs..."

The dragging about hadn't done Tadashi any favors. His ankles were bruised and bleeding where the handcuffs had bit in, his wrists weren't in much better shape, and that wasn't including the various bruises from where he'd been forcibly grabbed, previously bound, or had a weapon pressed rather forcibly against his body. He was still barefoot to boot. This was obviously completely visible to all involved, so the man who was currently pretty much entirely supporting Tadashi's weight glanced at Yama.

"Take the cuffs off his ankles. I wasn't planning on leaving them anyway and he's obviously not going to be running anywhere," Yama told his subordinate.

There was some shifting as they arranged for Tadashi to sit halfway in and halfway out of the limo so the man could free Tadashi's ankles without anyone falling. Once the cuffs were off, Tadashi was pulled upright where he stood swaying and shifting from one foot to the other. He winced as the sensation of pins and needles swept through both feet before meekly allowing himself to be led to the rebar. 

The man quickly started on switching the handcuffs and the position of Tadashi's arms from behind his back to over his head once more. In the act, there came a moment where one wrist was handcuffed in one set of the cuffs, the other wrist was handcuffed in the other set, but neither was bound to anything else, meaning the man holding him was the only thing keeping him there while everyone else was still in the limo a good twenty feet or more away.

Tadashi was good at risk assessment - great, even - as long as it involved anyone but him. His family was very much aware of this fact and his friends had quickly caught on after the number of times he'd ended up injured while testing Baymax. In fact, there was a rumor in the nerd lab that the whole reason Tadashi was building a healthcare companion was because he was accident-prone. 

Yama and his people weren't aware of this. They also didn't know Tadashi had a black belt in karate. It had also escaped their attention that Hiro had come by his manipulative tendencies honestly and that Tadashi was the better liar by far. What Yama and his people did notice was when their meek meal ticket suddenly laid their compatriot out flat. By the time they registered that and started to react, Tadashi had already taken off at a sprint.

The alley was one of those twisty ones with lots of turns that made it impossible to tell if it was a dead end or not. Tadashi prayed it wasn't even as he ran as fast as he could, aware of the sound of shouting and wheels behind him. They wouldn't kill him - he was pretty certain about that - but there was no way they were going to let him go that easily.

He either got turned around or, more likely, the van with the others was blocking the other end of the alley just in case because just after Tadashi all but tripped down some stairs and turned a corner, he found himself facing a very large man in a familiar luchadore mask. Tadashi windmilled his arms as he tried to reverse directions, nearly bouncing off the man. The man took advantage and lashed out at an impressive speed. Tadashi hit the ground, ears ringing, only to be pulled back upright by the man firmly gripping his forearm. 

"Going somewhere?" the man sneered. Then Tadashi had to skip back as the man suddenly went down hard. Gogo, who'd tackled the guy in the back at some speed, somersaulted off of the moaning man and grabbed Tadashi's arm with a terse, "Come on!"

Tadashi let her lead him through the back alley maze but not without asking, "How'd you find me?"

"Got lucky. I recognized the goons blocking one of the ways in here," she replied before glancing down. "How are your feet holding up?"

Tadashi winced and admitted, "They could be better. I'm not used to being barefoot outside the dojo or my house."

Gogo nodded and led him through two turns, Tadashi very much aware he was slowing her down. They came out in a wide alley just shy of the street. Tadashi grinned at the sight and the sound of approaching sirens as he turned to face it, only to glance back when an engine revved. The van holding the rest of Yama's people was right there and it was coming towards them. 

Gogo grabbed Tadashi and they fled for the open street even as the van followed, quickly catching up. They turned sharply as soon as they could, but Tadashi couldn't outrun the van and Gogo wasn't leaving him behind. The van whipped in front of them, trying to cut them off, so they double-backed. The van was thrown in reverse and blocked them again before they could reach the alley. Then the passenger door swung open to reveal Tsubaki aiming a gun at them.

"End of the line, hero," she stated. Then an ambulance clipped the van, causing Tsubaki to fumble the weapon even as the ambulance screeched to a halt.

"Get in!" a disturbingly familiar voice called out from the ambulance.

"Hiro?!" Tadashi cried out, incredulous, even as Gogo practically dragged him and threw him into the open back of the ambulance. Once he was in, Tadashi quickly threw open the divider between the front and the back, noting in dismay that he couldn't get through while Hiro was sitting in the driver's seat.

"Please don't tell me you stole this ambulance, you bonehead!"

"Okay, I won't tell you," Hiro replied.

"Unbelievable," Tadashi muttered right before Hiro, for all intents and purposes, stood on the gas pedal. Tadashi and Gogo were forced to scramble for handholds or else get thrown out the back by the sudden burst of speed.

"Hiro!" Tadashi yelled at his brother in a reprimanding tone.

"Lecture after we're safe," Gogo advised right before a shot rang out.

~*~*~*~*~*~

The van was following them, Hiro noted with a frown. And they were shooting at them. Great.

"Shit! Hiro, evasive maneuvers! We can't let them shoot our tires out!" Gogo ordered.

"Right," Hiro agreed and he made the ambulance weave back and forth as more shots were fired.

"Kid? Where are you? You're not where you're supposed to be based off of your last reported location," Mazda barked over the radio.

"Sorry. I had to stop to pick up some passengers. Gogo and Tadashi are fine for now, but we've got a tail I really could use your help with. As for where we are.... uh, just passed the post office on Kamotsu Way."

"Son of a... hang a left on San. There's an automated stinger trap near Williams."

"Right." 

San was coming up right now and how had Gogo pulled off that trick with the handbrake? Well, he didn't actually know where the handbrake was, so Hiro improvised. He knew he'd made a mistake as soon as he did, even without Tadashi and Gogo crying out in the back. The left wheels went up in the air as he took the turn far too fast, forcing Hiro to frantically straighten them out while taking his foot off the brake and giving it a little more gas. He let out a breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding when the left tires roughly bounced down.

"The hell were you thinking?!" Gogo railed. "You don't take that kind of corner at that speed in something this top heavy! Are you trying to make us roll? Where'd you learn to drive?!"

"I haven't! I'm fourteen, remember?" Hiro sassed back. There was a pause.

"Take your foot off the gas when you approach intersections and coast. If you're still going too fast for the turn, ease on the brake," Gogo instructed.

"Gogo! Don't encourage him!" Tadashi complained.

"I'm not encouraging him! I'm making sure we survive this!"

"Yeah, yeah," Hiro said, rolling his eyes, and then inquired, "Did we lose the van?"

"We lost the van, but not the limo," Tadashi reported.

"What limo?" Hiro asked before his eyes went wide because a gunshot had just taken out his side view mirror. Then he cursed and swerved, catching sight of the limo and the gunman leaning out of the front window in his remaining mirror as he did.

"Where's that stinger trap?" Hiro frantically asked Mazda over the radio.

"Coming up. Let us know the instant you cross Odaiba Avenue."

"Right. I'm coming up on it right now... and we're through!"

"Great! Turn right on Williams. We'll get you there."

Hiro paused, shrugged mentally, and obeyed.

"I thought the stinger was on San," he told Mazda.

"It is, but it's a hollow stinger. Less dangerous but it takes longer to affective. Their tires should be out of air about the time you reach us.

"Nice," Hiro stated before swerving from another gunshot and then taking the turn as slow as he dared. "Let's hope I live that long."

"Relax, kid. We've got you."

Hiro huffed until he realized there were other sirens. A look behind in his remaining mirror showed not only police cares trailing the limo but more were blocking the side streets. In fact, they were blocking the side streets ahead as well and bunch were coming out of the parking lot of... was that a police station? It was. They were approaching a police station and a quickly forming police cordon. The limo had nowhere to go and it's tires were deflating.

Hiro cackled even as he took his foot off the gas and gently eased it on the brake per Gogo's instructions. Three police cars shot past the ambulance to further block the limo even as a uniformed officer started waving at Hiro to drive into the police station parking lot. Hiro did and then performed a rather poor park job before throwing the gears into the P they'd been on before he'd stolen the vehicle. Then he slumped with a sigh of relief. That lasted for maybe a second before Tadashi practically ripped open the door and pulled Hiro out of the ambulance.

"What were you thinking, knucklehead?" his brother demanded.

"That I needed to save you," Hiro replied honestly. 

He wasn't sure how to catalog Tadashi's answering expression, as it seemed to be equal parts taken aback, angry, worried, and proud all at once. Then Hiro was pulled into one of the tightest embraces Tadashi had ever given him. Hiro would've protested except Tadashi's breath hitched and something wet hit the top of his head. So Hiro wrapped his arms silently around Tadashi and hugged him back. And if Tadashi was hiding tears by pressing his face against the top of Hiro's head, then Hiro wasn't going to tell.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, that's the end of the action for this story, but we still have all of the fallout to deal with - and there is a _lot_ of fallout, including what the would be buyer is up to.
> 
> I blame this chapter on listening to _Traveling By Ambulance_ by Monarchy - which is also where the title of this chapter is from - a few times too many. That, and watching a lot of Steven Spielburg movies while growing up. He really likes his chase scenes. 
> 
> Ambulance interiors vary depending on the age, location, and manufacturer of the vehicle but a quick image search suggests the style where the driver has access to the back is falling out in favor of the type that has a window separating the front from the back. While the real life reasoning for such things is no doubt myriad and probably ranges from not wanting to distract the driver to protecting them from a flailing patient, my reasoning was very simply that it would be impossible for any of the adults to take over the job of driving from Hiro, no matter how much they wished otherwise. ^_^
> 
> Kamotsu means 'cargo' and San means 'three' in Japanese, so everyone who lives in the San Francisco area (or is willing to look it up on an online map) will note that I'm implying the drop-off point was likely in Hunter's Point. I'm aware that there might not be a place in Hunter's Point that matches the maze-like alley, nor is there likely an automated stinger trap (much less a hollow stinger trap) at the implied location but I'm claiming a combination of artistic license and the fact that between being set in an alternate universe and at least twenty years into the future will make a few things different. That being said, Cargo Way, 3rd St, and Williams are real street names and there is actually a police station and a post office at the noted locations.


	11. Fallout

Chapter 11 - Fallout

Cass eventually found herself in a small conference room in the hospital that evening, although technically it was the next morning by that point. She didn't know what the room was normally used for but Detective Elizabeth Mazda seemed to have taken it over for the time being. The police officer had papers strewn about the table and seemed to be coordinating with both higher ups and lower downs over a tiny headset and her cell phone. Despite all of that, Cass found herself liking the woman because as soon as an officer had brought Cass up, the woman had sat Cass down and explained exactly what was going on and what they were going to do next. Mazda had apparently tried to get Hiro involved in the debriefing as well, but the boy had stubbornly refused to leave his brother's side while the medical staff treated Tadashi and Gogo. Hiro himself had apparently already been treated by an overzealous EMT, which Cass was rather grateful for.

Cass could've told Mazda it would end up that way. Ever since the fire, she'd seen Hiro giving Tadashi the same worried looks Tadashi often gave Hiro, meaning it had finally sunk into the younger teenager's brain that the older one was human and thus not immortal. More, she suspected Hiro was figuring out exactly what that meant in conjunction with with Tadashi's rather disturbing inability to accurately consider his own peril. It wasn't like Tadashi was suicidal or anything; he just didn't view himself as more important that other people in general and the people he was close to in particular. It hadn't surprised Cass in the least to find out Tadashi had tried to run into the SFIT fire and she had been more than a little relieved and grateful to find out her boy hadn't made it inside before the concussive force of the explosion had knocked him back. 

The superhero thing had surprised her, but only because Cass had half-way convinced herself that - with Hiro's newfound over-protective urges towards his brother and the fact Tadashi had never gotten rid of his - neither of her boys would allow the other to be involved in something that unsafe. It hadn't lasted long, however, once she realized their friends and Tadashi's healthcare robot were part of the equation, thus likely negating the danger level in their minds. Honestly, she found herself accepting it had been inevitable what with Tadashi's reckless selflessness and Hiro's insistence on making anything he was involved with 'awesome'. Of course, she'd hoped she could keep it to a one-time thing now that both of her boys had gotten a glimpse of how careless their actions had been but now, as she stared down at the contract Mazda had given her to sign that would allow her underaged nephew be a superhero/police consultant, she knew it wasn't to be.

"They're never going to leave my boys alone, are they?" Cass asked and she wasn't just referring to the media that had descended like locusts once they got wind of what had happened. Mazda gave her a grim but sympathetic smile.

"No, I'm afraid not. There was a possibility it would've blown over eventually because costumes aren't that unique. People might have eventually brushed it off as cosplayers in the wrong place at the right time or a group of insane people out for revenge. Then Krei pointed the media at your boys after the first incident, which caught people's attention, and now this mess. The moment Gogo Tomago made it clear she was protecting your nephews, she established the Big Heroes as more than just one-offs _and_ that your nephews are their civilian contacts. That means anyone wanting a piece of the Big Heroes are probably going to want a piece of your boys as well. Their civilian identities, I mean."

Cass slumped in her chair and asked, "Now what?"

"Well, we're currently figuring out a way to keep people from finding out your nephews actually are Big Heroes and not just the civilians responsible for the team's gear. Hiro said he had an idea before he tagged after his brother, but he also said he needs Tadashi's help to pull it off, so we're waiting for the medics to clear them, which shouldn't be too much longer.

"Speaking of that, I'm actually glad the standard contract for this kind of thing includes mandatory therapy sessions. I don't know if anyone's mentioned this to you yet, but your older nephew was sexually assaulted while being held hostage. Last I heard, he was insisting a rape kit wasn't necessary because, I quote, 'she didn't get that far', but he's still probably going to touch-shy for a while at the very least."

"Oh God," Cass moaned, because she still clearly remembered the last time Tadashi had girl trouble. Why did he always seem to attract the crazy ones? "What about Hiro?" 

"Hiro hasn't said anything about it happening to him, but I got the distinct impression while taking their statements that he witnessed exactly how far the Fujita in question got with his brother. The sooner you get both of those boys in therapy, the better. Here's the number of the psychiatrist I'm arranging. She runs a family practice and is a bit unorthodox in her methods, but she gets results and she's really good at keeping secrets."

Great, Hiro had witnessed this incident too. Tadashi must be thrilled. Not. Therapy was sounding better and better. Cass wondered if the therapist would be willing to see her too.

~*~*~*~*~*~

Now that she'd had a moment to consider the past night's events, Gogo suddenly had much greater respect for Tadashi's sanity. She'd thought Tadashi was the insanely reckless one of the family, but her friend had never actually stolen an ambulance to her knowledge, nor any other vehicle he didn't actually know how to drive. She was also pretty certain he'd never talked his way out a situation where he was being actively held hostage.

Gogo's respect for Cass, which had already been pretty high, had shot through the roof when she realized that the older woman had somehow kept both of her nephews alive and pretty much in one piece for over a decade with little to no help. Cass was an amazing woman and Gogo hoped that, when she grew up, she'd never have to raise anyone like the Hamada brothers because being their friend was hard enough. Especially since they were also both hypocrites to boot.

"I still can't believe you _stole an ambulance_."

"Hey, I needed it to catch up and rescue you and Gogo after _you_ got yourself _sold to the highest bidder_."

"Which wouldn't have happened if you hadn't _let yourself be taken_!"

"They were going to kill you, Tadashi! _They had a gun to your head!_ And at the time they didn't exactly know you're apparently worth _half-a-million to someone_! I didn't want you to get hurt!"

"Yeah? Well, ditto!"

There was a pause as they both took a deep breath and Gogo took advantage to interject, "Are you done?" When both shot her startled looks, having apparently forgotten they had an audience, she added, "Because from my point-of-view, you're both reckless idiots incapable of considering how your actions will affect others. I have spent the night being chased, chasing you, being shot at, fighting five-to-six on one odds, beat up, nearly dumped into a pit of spikes, actually dumped into a water tank, and otherwise doing whatever I could to save _both your asses_ and I haven't even gotten a thank you yet."

Both of the Hamada brothers winced and quickly murmured, "Thank you, Gogo."

"You're welcome. Now can you please stop fighting? At least wait until we're somewhere a bit more private and I don't have headache."

Both of the boys looked somewhat mutinous at her request but Hiro had winced again when she'd mentioned privacy and Tadashi had added a bit of a guilty look when she mentioned having a headache. She felt a little bit guilty at guilt-trip but they really should wait until they were somewhere a random person couldn't barge in and she really did have a headache from listening to them blame the other for risking their life in order to save each other. See? Hypocrites. She sighed and wished for a piece of gum but her last piece had been destroyed sometime during the night.

"So..." Hiro eventually started after a few blessed minutes of silence, "What are we going to tell the others about this when they get back from the convention? I mean, they're going to know something's up what with the whole police consultant thing."

"Aw, crap," Gogo moaned, hitting her forehead with the base of her palm. "I forgot to call them and let them know we're alright."

"Wait, they know?" Hiro squeaked, eyes going wide.

"How did you think the cops found the roller derby, genius?" Gogo snarked. "I had them infiltrate Yama's Los Edos casino and trace the video feed. It was part of my deal with Yama; it had to be a live feed."

"Well, my phone's gone," Tadashi stated with a sigh, "I'm pretty certain that even if the cops did find it, it's probably been confiscated as evidence by now, so we'll have to use one of your guys' phones."

Hiro and Gogo both winced, making Tadashi look at them suspiciously.

"What?" he asked.

"The bottomless pit they had you bound over? Has a very wet bottom. Hiro and I got to find that out first hand. The suit's kill switch saved the electronics for my maglev, but not my phone or the radio in my helmet. I'm pretty certain Hiro's in the same boat," Gogo explained.

"Yeah, my phone's pretty well waterlogged too. Waterproof my butt. We might have to ask Honey Lemon about additional waterproofing."

"So we all need new phones. Great. Aunt Cass is going to kill us," Tadashi declared.

"And why would I need to kill you?" Cass asked from the door, making them all jump.

"They either have no phone or a phone that doesn't work," Gogo tattled when neither brother said anything.

"Yours isn't working either!" Hiro shot back.

"So? She doesn't have to pay for mine," Gogo easily replied. Cass just sighed as she moved towards the only other chair in the room, Hiro having stolen the one between Gogo and Tadashi's beds.

"We'll deal with that later," Cass decided out loud.

"But we need to call the others and let them know we're okay," Tadashi quickly interjected with a worried look.

"Oh! Give me just a sec!" Cass told him as she fumbled with her phone.

"When did you call them, anyway?" Hiro asked Gogo.

"I texted them on the way to the roller derby. I'm glad they managed to come through."

"Huh. What's the likelihood they're on their way back right now?" Hiro wondered.

"Pretty high," Wasabi's voice dryly stated. Gogo leaned towards where Cass was holding up her phone, wincing slightly at the movement as it tugged on her injuries. Cass had her phone on speaker and barely visible on the screen was Honey Lemon holding up the phone so they could see her, Wasabi in the driver's seat, and Fred and Baymax in the back seat in the darkened interior of Wasabi's car. Baymax reached out to tap the screen, as if wondering why they were in the small device.

"Hey, buddy. How are you?" Tadashi asked, visibly relaxing at the sight of his robot.

"I have been recently recharged and I have learned that gambling does not make me a better healthcare companion."

"Uh, yeah. That's right," Tadashi agreed, an eyebrow rising as his eyes flickered towards their friends. Honey Lemon and Wasabi gave him rather guilty grins but Fred quickly saved their butts by gleefully announcing, "We had to go undercover to get into the casino. It was awesome!"

Of course, attracting attention to himself made Gogo realize something despite the dim light in the car.

"Wait. Fred, are you wearing lipstick?"

"Yeah! Lola did an awesome job."

"Lola?" Cass muttered but since she was holding the phone she was obviously heard.

"She's a drag queen my mom knows. She's pretty cool. You should've see the outfit Wasa- Ow!"

"Fred! I thought we agreed not to talk about that!" Wasabi interjected in a hiss between clenched teeth.

"Oh, yeah," Fred agreed before leaning closer to the phone and whispering, "Tell you later."

Honey Lemon giggled while Wasabi stated, "I can hear you, Fred." Fred gave him an innocent, beaming grin.

"Don't know what you're talking about."

"Fred," Wasabi warned.

"Guys," Tadashi interrupted, running a hand down his face.

"Sorry. We're glad you're okay!" Honey Lemon replied, echoed by the others.

"Oh, that reminds me. The hell is with you two?! We left you alone for one weekend - _one!_ \- and you got yourselves kidnapped!" Wasabi raved.

"That was totally not my fault!" Hiro protested.

"Says the guy who ripped off Big Yama," Gogo pointed out, wishing she had gum to pop.

"Hey, I didn't know he was some sort of big crime lord. The guy wore sweat pants to a bot fight, for crying out loud! What kind of crime lord wears sweat pants to a bot fight?! Besides, Tadashi got kidnapped before I did."

"Because I was looking for you, bonehead. Why didn't you call me when you left campus?"

"Because I didn't want you to come looking for me," Hiro admitted a bit sheepishly.

"Well that obviously backfired."

They both glared at each other until Tadashi sighed and ran a hand down his face.

"Look, Hiro, I'll take off the trackers if you just agree to _call me_ like a normal person."

"What? No! Leave them on! In fact, you _both_ need trackers!" Gogo insisted. "I have never met two people more trouble-prone than you two! Just make it so no one else can use them. Put it in our helmets, maybe."

"Aw, yes!" Fred crowed over the phone before enthusing, "Great idea! That way, if a supervillain ever tries to separate or kidnap one of us, everyone else can swoop in for the rescue!" Honey Lemon and Wasabi visibly winced as he pumped his fists in the small space of Wasabi's car.

"I thought we weren't continuing the whole superhero thing," Wasabi stated with a frown.

"Yeah, well, we have something to tell you," Hiro admitted with a wince.

"Like what?" Honey Lemon gently inquired.

"Like we either all sign on as police consultants or we end up in jail," Gogo bluntly informed them.

"WHAT?!"

They quickly explained the offer and what it meant to their friends.

"Well, I suppose that makes sense. And they're not likely to actually call us, right?" Wasabi conceded.

"Right now, we'd be playing bodyguards to Hiro and Tadashi to warn people off. Once we convince people they're not part of the team, that is," Gogo explained.

"Oh! Detective Mazda was talking about that! She said you told her you had an idea, Hiro," Cass added.

"Huh? Oh, yeah! Listen up, guys. Here's what we should do..."

~*~*~*~*~*~

"You know, when they let us go home, I wasn't expecting to be trapped here," Hiro complained at his webcam. They'd gotten home so early Saturday morning that the sun still hadn't been up although it had been starting to get lighter. They had been allowed to leave with the knowledge they had to be at the main police station by Sunday evening for their little staged plan to work, but Saturday was going to be so everyone out of town had time to get back in and everyone could catch some sleep. It was Sunday morning now, everyone was awake and back in town, and Hiro was talking to his and Tadashi's friends while Tadashi helped Aunt Cass figure out a more permanent fix for their broken front door.

"Seriously, though, I need out of here or I'm going to freak!"

"It can't be that bad. I mean, you live above a restaurant so you're practically set for a siege," Wasabi pointed out.

"Not with the way Aunt Cass is stress eating," Tadashi suddenly added as he came up the stairs. He frowned at the darkened bedroom. "Hiro, why are the blinds closed?"

"Why? This is why," Hiro answered, opening the closest blind that wasn't facing the computer screen. On the sidewalk below, a bunch of questions were suddenly shouted out as the reporters camped outside tried to catch attention without getting themselves slapped with a trespassing violation. That was bad enough, but there was a glint two houses down that attracted attention to a telephoto lens that was obviously taking pictures of them and the inside of their room. Tadashi closed the blinds while making a face.

"Okay, that might be a bit of a problem, especially if we're going to sneak our stuff out for the press conference," Tadashi conceded.

Hiro nodded before turning back to the webcam and begging, "Help!"

"Don't worry, little dude. The Fred-man's got a plan! Pack what you need and be downstairs and ready to go in one hour. Got it?"

"Got it," Hiro agreed before exiting out of the video chat.

"I'll get clothes if you'll figure out a way to move our supersuits and the microbots without attracting attention," Hiro offered to Tadashi.

"Right," Tadashi agreed before calling downstairs, "Hey, Aunt Cass! Grab Mochi! We've got a way out!"

~*~*~*~*~*~

"Ready?" Fred voice asked over Hiro's cell phone, which the boy had put on speaker so everyone could hear any instructions.

"We're downstairs," Tadashi confirmed.

"Good. A car's going to pull up front and honk the Batman theme."

"You mean, na-na-na-na-na-na Batman?"

"That's the one! When you hear it, run out and jump in the car. Okay?"

"Got it," Hiro agreed as he surreptitiously unlocked the door, pulled it open a fraction and then relocked the spring lock. That way they'd be able to pull it open and it would lock behind them when they pulled it closed right after. They'd have to send someone to lock the bolts later.

The three of them stood on edge for thirty seconds, ready to sprint, when they heard the signal. They stepped and ran for a car with heavily-tinted windows. The bulk of the car had forced the worst of the mass of people back but it was still a bit of a gauntlet to get to the car and inside. Once the three and their bags, including Mochi in his cat carrier, were squeezed into the backseat, Fred turned around from his place riding shotgun and gave them a thumbs up.

"So far so good, dudes. Ow!"

Gogo turned from hitting him to go back to gripping the steering wheel, saying, "Don't you ever make me honk the Batman theme again."

"Gogo?" Tadashi said in surprise.

"Yep. Buckle up and hang on. Time to lose the crowd."

"So where are we going?" Aunt Cass breathlessly asked after everyone scrambled for their seatbelts and Gogo took off.

"My place," Fred responded as Gogo was busy evading paparazzi and news vans.

"It's a mansion," Hiro added when Fred didn't elaborate.

"You have a mansion?" Aunt Cass asked, eyebrows rising.

"Oh, yeah. Now hang on," Gogo stated before taking a sharp left. By the time they'd lost the news crews and various paparazzi, Aunt Cass was looking a little wild-eyed.

"Well, that was an interesting drive," she allowed as they exited out of the car in the safety of Fred's garage.

"Yeah, and we didn't end up in the bay this time."

"What?!" Aunt Cass squawked. Tadashi elbowed Hiro in the ribs while giving his brother a look.

"Ow!" Hiro yelped. The familiar sound of inflating followed.

"There he is. We left him here for the time being, if that's okay," Fred stated. Tadashi nodded as Baymax strode over.

"That's fine."

"Hello. I am Baymax, you're personal healthcare companion. Hello, Hiro. Do you require assistance?"

"Baymax! Tadashi's being mean to me," Hiro enthused before pulling off the fakest pout ever. Baymax's head went down and then back up.

"Scan complete. I detect no injuries, but elevated neurotransmitter levels suggest that you have been engaging in what Aunt Cass terms 'rough housing' and 'horse play'. If done cautiously, there are no problems with such actions but if you fear injury, might I suggest protective gear?"

Hiro let out a disgusted noise.

"You heard the man," Tadashi teased, elbowing his brother again.

"I am not a man. I am a robot," Baymax corrected. Tadashi clapped a hand on Baymax's shoulder with an amused look before following Fred to the door that connected to the house. Aunt Cass blinked as the door was opened by a butler. 

"Wow. You really do have a mansion. Uh, hi. Do you come with the place?"

The best part, Hiro decided, was Heathcliff's bland expression as he responded, "I am a family retainer so, no, I do not come with the house."

"We've got the rest of the microbots still in the spare pool. Where's the microbots you were bringing?" Fred eventually inquired.

"Being useful," Tadashi replied, glancing at the luggage and cat carrier which were all white with red and purple detailing. Fred followed his look, blinked, and then grinned.

"Nice!"

"Just lead me someplace we can put Mochi and the few things we brought for cover and then we can work on the plan. Did Honey Lemon bring the stuff for the mirror coating?"

"She's getting it right now."

The guest room was as posh as the rest of the building.

"Ooh, are you sure it's okay to leave Mochi in here?" Aunt Cass with a worried frown. Fred waved off her worries with a brief, "It's fine." Mochi meowed in surprise as the microbots forming his carrier suddenly set him gently down on the floor while the suitcases sat out a change of clothes for each of the Hamada brothers and their aunt on the bed. 

"That was awesome!" Fred enthused. "Where are you hiding the thing? Under your hat?"

"Yeah," Tadashi replied, pulling up his baseball cap to reveal the NCT before tugging it back down. "If we're going to pull this off this evening, I'll need the practice, especially at moving them while trying to appear like I'm not. Holding them in one place is the easiest so far, but I think I might be getting there for advanced movement."

"Right. Practice and painting. Let's do this!" Fred agreed. Hiro, Tadashi, and the microbots followed Fred as he left the guest room, leaving Aunt Cass alone with Mochi and Heathcliff.

"Well, I feel a bit useless right now," Aunt Cass admitted.

"If you wish, you may join me in the kitchens. Master Frederick raves about your 'cat's paws' and I know the cook would love to exchange recipes with you."

"Oh! Okay."

~*~*~*~*~*~

There was only a little bit of time left before they had to leave for the police station. The remainder of the microbots had been repainted in their new colors, Tadashi had his part down pat, everyone had been fed and watered, and there really wasn't anything left to do before they had to go. While everyone else was lazing about as they waited, Tadashi was pacing and fretting because far too much of the plan involved him not screwing up. Baymax suddenly moved into his way and pulled him into a hug. Tadashi froze in surprise for a moment before melting into the embrace even as Baymax lectured, "Hugs are good for emotional well-being and can help calm an agitated individual."

"Thanks, buddy," Tadashi said, pulling back and patting the robot's arm. Then he smiled an evil smile and added, "I think Hiro could use a hug as well."

"What? No, I don't!" Hiro insisted as Tadashi sicced Baymax on him. He didn't get farther than standing up before Baymax caught him up in a hug, complete with a pat to the head and a, "There, there. You will be alright."

"Hate you so much right now," Hiro informed Tadashi, glaring at his brother from the confines of the robot's arms. Tadashi gave him a fake pout. "So much," Hiro reiterated. 

Tadashi relented and said, "Come on, buddy. We need to get you in your armor."

~*~*~*~*~*~

"Everyone ready?" Mazda asked over her radio.

"Ready," the Big Heroes all called in response. The detective, dressed in full uniform for a change, nodded and stated, "Beginning operation."

"Copy that."

Mazda looked at the Hamada brothers and their aunt before jerking her head at the door.

"Showtime, people."

The main police station for San Fransokyo had a set-up for major events requiring press conferences so dealing with news crews was nothing new for them. They'd actually already started the press conference, explaining what was 'officially' known about the roller derby, namely that, yes, it had happened, yes, the Big Heroes had been involved because the Hamada brothers had been kidnapped, and, yes, the Hamada's were fine and the crime lord they believed responsible was behind bars. Then someone in the crowd realized said Hamadas were trying to sneak past and there was a pause as cameras flashed and questions were shouted at the family and not the officer at the podium.

Hiro suddenly broke away and, to the apparent surprise of the officer giving the media a speech, he grabbed a microphone. Then he froze for a moment at the sight of all of the people looking at him expectantly.

"Uh, hi!" he squeaked before clearing his throat and trying again. "Hi! I'm Hiro Hamada but I'm pretty sure you already know that. Anyway, I just wanted to say, yes, my brother and I were kidnapped Friday night, yes, we're fine, and no, we can't say more until the trial so please stop asking. Also, can you stop blocking the traffic around our house? It's making it hard for my aunt to run her business. Oh, and the guy two houses down trying to take pictures of our bedroom with a telephoto lens? You are _really creepy_. Stop it. Uh. That's all. Thank you."

Hiro gave the officer a sheepish smile as he handed the microphone back. The man just sighed and shook his head as he accepted it before facing the media again even as Hiro rejoined Tadashi and Aunt Cass. They pulled him into a hug as soon as he reached them. Then the crowd gasped as a platform of microbots suddenly lifted Hiro, Tadashi, and Aunt Cass up into the air.

"We'll take them from here," Wasabi called out in his best heroic voice.

If the media's reaction to seeing Hiro and Tadashi had been excited, they turned rabid when they realized the Big Heroes were standing on the police station's roof. Well, five of the them were, but the media wouldn't be able to tell because there were two microbot constructions there mimicking Hiro and Tadashi in their suits. The 'White Knight' construct was even gesturing to make it look like it was controlling the microbots even as Tadashi held Hiro and the suddenly clingy Aunt Cass and murmured, "It's okay, I've got you."

The team helped the family move off of the platform of microbots and to the roof proper, Tadashi pausing while Fred helped him to tug his cap down a bit more firmly over the NCT to keep it hidden from view. Hiro, meanwhile, quickly scrambled over to give his double a fist bump so as to make their physical differences more noticeable. At Hiro's insistence, Hiro's double was slightly taller and stockier while Tadashi's double was slightly slimmer, shorter, and a bit more androgynous-looking.

Baymax insisted on being involved in the fist bumping, leaving the team grateful the media wasn't close enough to hear his "Bah-a-la-la-la" noise. They didn't stay much longer before sneaking away. Their job here was done.

Meanwhile, Hiro fist bumping Baymax while standing next to his double would end up on the front page of every newspaper and news site in the city

~*~*~*~*~*~

"Hmm... clever," Alistair Krei mused as he took in the news Monday morning. He hadn't been aware the microbots could mimic so well. At least, he was fairly certain the doubles were the result of the microbots. They'd also, by keeping the focus on Hiro, helped to further hide Tadashi's involvement.

Krei glanced down at the cell phone sitting next to his morning coffee and bagel and debated. He'd already had to replace and destroy the old sim card in it to prevent the police from attempting to trace it back to either the buyer who'd contacted Yama or the anonymous tipper who'd sited 'suspicious activity' near the location of the drop-off. He hadn't planned on losing any more than the five hundred thousand yen he had and, while things hadn't turned out as anticipated, they weren't anything he couldn't work with or around. There were still a few loose ends, however. There was the possibility they would take care of themselves, but still...

A knock roused Krei from his thoughts.

"Sir, SFIT's board of directors wants your opinion on something," Yaqin signed.

"Ah. Which line?"

"Three, sir. Sir?"

"Yes, Yaqin?"

"Do you really want to move forward with that?" Yaqin silently inquired, gesturing at a pile of rather important paperwork that just so happened to have Tadashi Hamada's name in a rather prominent position.

"Yes, I think I do," Krei replied seriously before giving his assistant a charming grin. "Don't worry, Yaqin. It will all work out. I'll make sure of it."

~*~*~*~*~*~

It was dangerous for them all to be here like this but after spending the weekend running and hiding, they needed to meet up and consider their options.

"What do we do with the Boss in jail?" Kyodai asked, still nursing the bruises the Big Hero had given him when she'd forcefully tackled him in the alley.

Tsubaki grimaced as she pushed her hair out of her face. She hated wearing it down but the younger Hamada had seen her out of costume once so her wanted poster was a lot more accurate than she liked. She gave up with a sigh and admitted, "They've got Ran, Botan, and Ayame rotting in a cell as well as most of the grunts. Even if Boss manages to get his trial expedited, theirs probably won't be. And the cops got enough video from the derby that I don't think even the Boss will be able to deny involvement. Kidnapping's a federal crime, you know?"

"So that's it, then? The Boss is done for and so's what he built," Sakura stated bitterly.

"So, revenge?" Max suggested, his twin brother nodding in agreement.

"Don't you idiots watch the news?" Hinata sneered. "The Big Heroes basically closed rank around the Hamadas. No one's getting close enough to harm them without the whole team coming down _hard_."

They all wilted a little but the resulting silence meant everyone heard Tsubaki's phone chime from a text. She quickly looked at her phone with a frown that turned into a slow, sadistic smile.

"Well, well, well."

"What, Tsubaki?" Hinata snapped impatiently.

"The buyer contacted us."

"What do they want?" Sakura asked warily.

"They say they know what happened wasn't our fault and they're offering a job. To _all_ of us."

There was a contemplative pause.

"It could be a trap."

"And if it's not?"

"Then sign me up."

The remains of Yama's empire smiled vicious smiles. Looked like they might have a new Boss.

~*~*~*~*~*~

Meanwhile, someone else was catching up to the news online on their phone while still in their tiny apartment.

"Oh, good. They're actually superheroes and not just pretending. Maybe now I can finally have my revenge! Mwahahaha!"

The evil laughter was cut off by pounding on the thin apartment wall and a heavily accented voice yelling, "Cut it off! People are trying to sleep!"

"Yes, Mrs. Ramirez. Sorry, Mrs. Ramirez. Won't happen again, Mrs. Ramirez."

"Good!" the woman shouted back before muttering just loud enough to be heard by her neighbor, "Who goes 'mwahahaha' anyway?"

"Hmph!" he grumped, although he kept it down to a whisper. "I'll show her. I'll show them all..."

~*~*~*~*~*~

A TV was playing a recording of the news even as a printer spat out photo-quality images. The photos were snatched up as soon as they were done and pinned in seemingly random locations to a large cork board. A method to the madness appeared, however, as hand-written notes and strings were added in. A picture of the Lucky Cat Café taken the Saturday following the roller derby - as evidenced by the still broken front door in the image - was connected to a close-up of a scowling Tadashi pulling down the blinds on a window, which was then connected to the picture of Hiro fist bumping Baymax that had made the front page. Hiro had been circled and a scrap of paper wondered, 'Weak link?' while another noted, 'Heavily Protected'.

_"-trying to take pictures of our bedroom with a telephoto lens? You are_ really creepy. _Stop it,"_ the Hiro in the recorded interview that had taken the city by storm demanded. The person standing at the cork board huffed in laughter.

"Creepy, huh? Noted," they stated even as they scrawled out a new note and attached it to the board.

'Find new way to observe.'

~*~*~*~*~*~

"You're coming to classes today?" Gogo asked as she walked up to where Hiro was splayed out in one of the chairs in the break room just off the labs. Tadashi was standing nearby, making barley tea from specially made teabags while he watched the interaction. 

"You're here," Hiro pointed out without looking up from his phone.

"I wasn't the one kidnapped a few days ago. I also heard rumors you both were being given some time off in order to 'adjust' or something," Gogo replied as she grabbed a chair, flipped it around, and sat in it. Her arms crossed over the backrest and she blew a bubble with her gum.

"All of my professors told me to take a week off," Tadashi admitted as he finished making his tea, "But Hiro needed a ride."

"All of my professors told me the same except Roe, the hard-ass. And speaking of the devil, he just sent me an email saying I _don't_ actually have to show up in his classes for the week. Damn it, couldn't he have sent this earlier?" Hiro complained.

"So, you're going to be heading back home then?" Gogo asked. The brothers exchanged looks.

"Stay here and tinker in our nice, quiet labs the press can't even get close to or go home?"

"If we go home, we'll either be stuck playing nice with a bunch of nosy people while we help Aunt Cass, or tinkering in the garage with a bunch of reporters asking what we're making for the Big Heroes next, or hiding in our room with the blinds shut and not actually getting anything done."

"Ah," Gogo replied after popping her bubble. Then Wasabi suddenly burst in.

"If you see Honey Lemon, _I'm not here_ ," he hissed at them before doing his best to hide. Honey Lemon paused by the open door to the break room soon after.

"Wasabi!" she wailed, waving the dress she was holding, "It's just the one! Lola wants to see it modeled before buying it. I swear, if you make me lose this sale...!"

"Lola? As in the drag queen Fred's mom knows?" Tadashi wondered.

"I don't want to know," Gogo decided.

"Says you. I want to see how this ends," Hiro insisted before calling out, "Honey Lemon! He's in here!"

"Traitor!" Wasabi squealed as he popped out of his hiding spot and made a dash for it.

"Wasabi! Get back here!" Honey Lemon demanded as she ran after. Hiro trotted after them both, phone obviously recording their antics. It was thus a bit of a surprise when Honey Lemon and Wasabi came back almost immediate, wearing upset expressions while Hiro was nowhere in sight.

"Tadashi! Come quick! They're moving your and Hiro's labs!"

"What?!" Tadashi asked rhetorically as he swiftly set his teacup aside and ran for the door. Sure enough, there were quite a few individuals with name tags attached to matching uniforms boxing up books and loose papers and placing equipment on dollies they were wheeling not only out of the labs in question but the building entirely.

"Hey, watch it! That's delicate!" Hiro's voice came form his lab, proving he was with the movers in there but apparently unable to stop them. 

Supervising the people moving Tadashi's lab was an older man about Aunt Cass's age. He looked like he was of Asian and Caucasian descent not unlike Tadashi himself and, while he was a bit overweight, he moved with speed and ease as he helped balance a man who'd picked up something far to heavy for him to lift. It suggested he had a pretty solid layer of muscle under the, well, nerdy exterior. Aside from the brief help, he was mostly standing there observing the move rather dispassionately while giving brisk instructions. His eyes widened at the sight of Tadashi, however.

"Ah! Mr. Hamada! My apologies about the abruptness of this. The board will no doubt send you an email some time today about the decision they came to earlier this morning, but I thought it prudent to get this done before the media or any intellectual thieves came snooping about, and they will once word gets around," the man stated, giving Tadashi a polite bow.

"I... You're kicking us out?" Tadashi asked plaintively. The man looked surprised.

"What? Oh, no! Not at all! I'll admit it had been brought up in the board meeting but it was fairly unanimous to keep you and your brother on as students. No, we're moving you to the Lovelace Laboratory. They're smaller but the building is much more secure and it's location would make it harder for potential kidnappers or thieves to reach it without being noticed."

"Oh. Uh, thank you?" Tadashi replied uncertainly, rubbing the back of his neck.

"Just doing my job as your new advisor. Oh! Forgive my rudeness. I haven't even introduced myself to you yet. Dr. Kojiro Ito, but you can call me Professor Ito," the man replied, holding out a hand for Tadashi to shake. Tadashi took it but he'd paled at the name and looked rather like a fish out of water.

"Kojiro Ito? As in, the Ito of the _Ito Ishioka Robotics Laboratory_? I thought you were in New Yoko!"

"I was," Professor Ito responded with an easy grin, "But SFIT bribed me with a bigger paycheck, a promise to consider my Mary for entry even outside of the normal time-frame for applying, _and_ a glimpse of the work of the students I'd be mentoring in robotics in order to lure me over. I must admit, you and your brother's work is most impressive."

"Wow," Tadashi breathed before shaking himself. "Um, thank you!"

"Tadashi! What's going on?!" Hiro demanded as he followed the movers out of his lab.

"They're moving us to a different lab. The, uh, Lovelace, right?" Tadashi explained, glancing at his new professor for confirmation. Professor Ito nodded.

"Huh. I thought that was limited to professors," Hiro stated with a frown.

"It was, but most of the people with space designated there agreed to give it up in order to work in the student labs or in the Kobayashi building, which has better parking access anyway," Professor Ito explained, "In fact, we ended up with so much space that we're going to open up a few recs for other students just to keep the group atmosphere SFIT prides itself on. Your friends might consider applying for a lab change."

Looks were exchanged before Hiro, with a suspicious expression, asked, "What are you saying, exactly?"

"I'm saying you don't seem to realize how much people talk on campus. I don't know if you just made the Big Heroes' tech or if you're the Big Heroes yourselves and I don't care as long as you're not misusing university resources. But a lot of people do care. And while putting you all in your own building is a bit of a risk, the fact is half of your classmates and teachers convinced themselves you aren't the Big Heroes and the other half is pretty certain that's exactly who you are. At this point? Better safe than sorry."

"Oh."

"Tell you what, the movers look like they're done here. How about I show you your new labs? Perhaps your friends' new labs as well if they put in the requisition forms."

"Uh, sure, Mr..."

"Ah. Professor Kojiro Ito. A pleasure to meet you, Mr. Hamada."

" _Ito?!_ "

~*~*~*~*~*~

It took a bit for them to get to the Lovelace Laboratory and not only because it was literally smack-dab in the middle of campus. But, despite its size in comparison to their previous lab, everything was state-of-the-art and latest-edition. Even the security, which had been pretty impressive at the old lab, was noticeably higher tech. The team was given a brief, whirl-wind tour of the place, including Hiro and Tadashi's new labs and the impressively large break room that took up half of the open lower level. Then Professor Ito and the movers were gone and Hiro and Tadashi were left to reconfigure their lab space.

"Huh," Fred said.

"What?" Gogo asked.

"Does anyone else feel like this is Act One wrapping up? You know, where the characters and location are finally established and the real plot is just beginning to rear it's head?"

"What plot?" Wasabi asked. Fred shrugged.

"I dunno. It just kind of feels that way to me."

"Hey, guys!" Hiro called out, leaning over the railing of the floor above, "Come check this out! Aside from the locked lab on the end, the place is pretty much empty. If you put in the lab transfers, we'll practically have the lab to ourselves!"

"Really?"

"Cool."

"Sounds great!"

"I'll have to get my chair moved over. You guys definitely need a mascot cheering you on.," Fred added. And while a part of him was insisted the other shoe was yet to drop and the plot was about to rear its ugly head, he shoved it aside. They were superheroes. As long as they stuck together, there wasn't anything they couldn't handle.

"Dibs on this one!"

"Hey! That's the one I was going to ask for!"

Well, eventually.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, that's the end of this story, and the set-up for the next... several. It's going to be fun.
> 
> What Baymax says when he hugs Tadashi is true about agitation, but should be used with caution. Some agitated individuals don't respond well to hugs for various reasons, for example if they are anxious about being hemmed in or don't like being touched. Even the ones who do respond well to being hugged won't respond well to a stranger; the hug has to be from someone trusted. Pacing, of course, is also a common sign of agitation but it can also be helpful as it gives the agitated person a sense of control over themselves.
> 
> Kyodai can mean either 'huge' or 'brothers' depending on what kanji are used. The second meaning is often used by the Yakuza. In other words, his name is a bit of a pun.
> 
> Professor Kojiro Ito is actually Professor Iosama from the comics which means the Mary he mentions is Marys Iosama, also from the comics. I just gave them more realistic names much like the movie does for the rest of the cast. The fact the closest real Japanese family name to Iosama is Ito and the lab is the Ito Ishioka Robotics Laboratory just amused the hell out of me.
> 
> Kobayashi is a very common Japanese last name, which is part of why I risked using it as the name for a building on the SFIT campus. Someone with that last name is bound to have done something with tech in the BH6 world. Star Trek fans might recognize it as the name of a ship. As for the lab the team is now slowly moving into, Ada Lovelace - who was the daughter of Lord Byron - invented computer programming before computers even physically existed. Mad props to the lady. As for why I moved the team to a different lab, well part of it is plans for future stories but the rest is that there's no way what the team is doing is going to be under everyone's radar. Which doesn't mean there aren't people out there who will help them keep it private rather than public. And after the fire and Callaghan's actions, the last thing the university would need is the bad publicity that would occur if a supervillain got a hold of the team's tech or one of the Hamada brothers. Thus, the move to a more private and secure lab.


End file.
